New Tribune Boss to "Fix" New York Station First
/
Former WMAQ GM Larry Wert has left the Peacock for job overseeing the Tribune stations.
From his office on the 17th floor of the Tribune Tower in Chicago, Wert is casting his gaze all the way to Manhattan.
Our man Robert Feder writes that Tribune's New York station WPIX has been without a permanent news director since October, when Bill Carey stepped down. Filling the news director job and making a few other adjustments in the largest of the 23 markets Wert oversees is a top priority.
Wert, 56, knows he has taken on the biggest challenge of his career. “There’s so much to absorb and so many issues to catch up with, the task is almost overwhelming, but at the same time very exciting,” he said. “In meeting with many of the employees who’ve worked so hard and lived through years of uncertainty, you can feel their enthusiasm for what’s ahead.”
Wert said he’s had no shortage of advice from friends and colleagues about whom to hire and how to improve both WGN television and radio — two heritage stations he’s competed against in one way or another for much of his professional life. If he does have specific plans for them, he’s not ready to share them yet.
