"Frank Billingsley’s reputation as a Houston legend precedes him," said Houston Public Media Station Manager, Josh Adams in a release. "His experience and connection to our community align perfectly with Houston Public Media’s mission to inform and inspire. We are thrilled to welcome him to the team and look forward to the impact his presence will have."
In his new role, Billingsley will play a central part in the launch of a multi-platform talk show, Hello, Houston!, premiering in early 2025.
The daily program, airing on News 88.7 KUHF radio, podcast, and social media, will feature Billingsley alongside award-winning broadcaster Ernie Manouse and producer Celeste Schurman (no time was provided by HPM as to when the show will air). Former 97.9 The Box KBXX Madd Hatta Morning Show producer James Kovacik, AKA Jim Beazy, will also produce the show.
Together, the station says the new public radio team will spotlight vibrant stories, inspiring profiles, and thought-provoking discussions that celebrate Houston's diversity and culture.
"Of course, I'll still get to talk about the weather, but Celeste, Ernie and I will have fun and fascinating discussions about politics, arts, concerts, restaurants, clubs, people: everything that makes this city so great," Billingsley added. "We have a great team behind us and I'm really looking forward to the challenge!"
"Frank’s depth of experience and his dedication to storytelling will bring a fresh perspective to our content," said Laurie Ramirez, Executive Director of Content Operations for Houston Public Media. "His work in the field has been exemplary, and we are confident he will elevate our programming to new heights."
Houston’s longest-serving TV meteorologist, Billingsley, had a 42-year career, including nearly three decades with Channel 2. KPRC morning meteorologist Anthony Yanez has since stepped into the role of chief meteorologist.
Billingsley has earned multiple honors from the Associated Press, Houston Press Club, Houston Press Newspaper, and Dallas Press Club. He was also named a “Houston Treasure” in 2018 and a “Houston Legend” by Houston City Book in 2021. The Houston Chronicle named Billingsley the “Ultimate Weatherman.”
Beyond television, Billingsley wrote "Swabbed & Found," chronicling his journey to find his biological family.
Chauncy Glover's Houston celebration of life will be held this Saturday, November 23, 2024, from 1 to 3 p.m. at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church. The public is invited.
Glover died earlier this month , on November 5th, at the age of 39. No cause of death has been released for the CBS Los Angeles KCBS 2 - KCAL 9 co-anchor.
Last Saturday, family and friends attended Glover's funeral in Athens, Alabama, where he was laid to rest. His former ABC13 KTRK Houston co-workers also attended his funeral, with Melanie Lawson and Mayra Moreno eulogizing Glover (you can read their emotional tributes through the link).
You can reserve a seat at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church for Glover's celebration of life here.
3826 Wheeler Avenue Houston, TX 77004attend Glover's Houston celebration, you can watch it online
If you can't attend Glover's Houston celebration, you can watch it online through the church's website.
Donations can be made to his non-profit, The Chauncy Glover Project, to continue its mission of empowering young men.
Sarah Forgany has been waking KENS 5 San Antonio morning viewers up for over a decade, but that changes next week as the AM anchor will move to the PM shift with the TEGNA station.
Starting Monday, November 25, 2024, Forgany will co-anchor the noon and 4 p.m. newscasts with Audrey Castoreno and the 5 p.m. newscast with Deborah Knapp.
"After waking up at 1:30 a.m. for the last 13 years, I’m smashing that alarm clock and sleeping in a bit. I look forward to being with my daughter, Bella, when she wakes up in the morning," Forgany said in a statement. "I hope our viewers who had breakfast with me all of those years will also be able to join me for lunch and dinner. After having Bella and a recent health scare, I’m grateful for this opportunity to work a more normal schedule where I can focus more on family and my health."
"When Sarah asked whether it was possible to adjust her schedule, we started exploring how that might be accomplished," added Tom Cury, KENS 5 president and general manager. "She has made a tremendous impact on our morning newscasts, and we look forward to her contributions at 12, 4 and 5 p.m."
She leaves the morning newscast on Friday, November 22.
Forgany joined KENS 5 in April 2010 from KLFY News 10 Lafayette, Louisiana.
The University of Houston grad started her broadcasting career with News24Houston and ABC13 KTRK.
My LinkedIn feed is full of reports of TEGNA's job cuts this week. This makes TEGNA just the latest to have layoffs or buyouts.
Here is the memo from executive vice president and chief operating officer of media operations Lynn Beall, who will depart from TEGNA in mid-2025:
"Today, we’re sharing that we’re centralizing our marketing team. This team will share the same goals as stations – growing audience and revenue.
We know this change won’t be easy, but it is a necessary step to becoming more focused, effective and strategic in our marketing efforts. This will eliminate duplication of work and allow us to apply best practices across the entire organization.
The team will oversee key areas including the growth of our stations and audience, digital marketing, consumer insights, community engagement, commercial production and strategic initiatives like sponsorships and sports. This structure will include regional marketing leaders who will oversee multiple stations and markets. We encourage everyone to apply for roles on the new team.
Unfortunately, because not everyone will have a seat in the new structure, we have also created a transition period for marketing employees through mid-January.
We’re very thankful for the hard work and dedication of our marketing teams and the positive impact they’ve made in serving our communities."
NewscastStudio reports that TEGNA is creating seven regional marketing hubs to eliminate hundreds of marketing jobs from its local television stations.
FTVLive says that more than marketing jobs were also cut.
Just today, TEGNA issued a release stating its Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of 12.5 cents per share, payable on January 2, 2025, to stockholders of record as of the close of business on December 6, 2024.
In Texas, TEGNA owns KHOU Houston, WFAA Dallas, KENS San Antonio, KVUE Austin, KCEN Waco, KAGS College Station, KYTX Tyler, KIII Corpus Christi, KBMT-KJAC Beaumont, KXVA Abilene and KIDY San Angelo.
Marlene Guzmán and Edgar Olivares have joined Telemundo Houston KTMD as multimedia journalists (MMJs). Guzmán started on Monday, while Olivares started in June.
For two years, Guzmán served as a Texas-based National Correspondent for Televisa-Univision.
Before that, the native Houstonian worked at Univision 45 KXLN Houston, starting as a producer in July 2016 before being promoted to weekend anchor/reporter in May 2017, a position she held until February 2022.
Earlier in her career, she was an anchor/producer for Entravision’s FOX and Univision stations in Laredo and a national and regional news correspondent for Azteca.
Guzmán's broadcasting journey began in December 2014 at CBS Radio Houston, where she worked as an on-air personality and board operator for Mega 101 KLOL.
The University of Houston grad reported for the school’s El Gato Media Network.
A bilingual journalist dedicated to excellence, Guzmán earned five regional Lone Star Emmy Awards and a National Emmy Award.
"Marlene is an exceptional professional with extensive experience, and we couldn’t be happier to welcome her to our team," said Freddy Oldenburg, KTMD Vice President of News. "Over the last decade, she has built an impressive career across several major media outlets and brings both local roots and a deep understanding of our community."
Edgar Olivares
Olivares came to KTMD from Telemundo 23 Salinas, California, where he was an anchor.
The Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara grad previously worked as a morning anchor/reporter/political analyst for Canal 44 Guadalajara Area, Mexico.
Before that, he was a morning anchor for Grupo Radio Fórmula Guadalajara.
Also joining as guests were KHOU 11 morning meteorologist Chita Craft and anchor Rekha Muddaraj, with ABC13 reporters Miya Shay and Mycah Hatfield. No matter the Houston TV channel, they danced to Bollywood tunes in traditional saris.
The wedding and incidental Houston media event occurred on November 3, 2024, at the Bryan Museum in Galveston, Texas.
Since arriving in the U.S. in 2002, Mukherjee has also worked as a correspondent for The Statesman and Times of India. Sassard, a New York transplant since 2013, currently serves as a Lieutenant at the Magnolia Fire Department.
The couple's relationship faced a challenging period when Sassard sustained a work injury that required a lengthy five-month recovery. Mukherjee's unwavering support during this challenging time strengthened their bond. Together, they have navigated the demands of their careers and the challenges posed by the pandemic, demonstrating the resilience of their partnership.
"As a little girl, I always believed in having a true partner to travel with, to work together, experience things and someone who will truly understand my passion for fashion, my culture and journalism," Mukherjee told mikemcguff.com. "The evening was a fairy tale because I finally found a true partner who cherishes all that and to see the entire Houston community and my fellow journalist TV friends who whom I have experienced not just a professional but personal journey dance on the tunes of Bollywood in sari was a dream. The venue was simply a historic dream."
Chauncy Glover's family, friends, and television co-workers celebrated and remembered him at his funeral service Saturday in Athens, Alabama, at the Lindsay Lane Baptist Church.
Glover, 39, former ABC13 Houston KTRK anchor and current CBS Los Angeles stations KCBS 2- KCAL 9 co-anchor, died in early November. No cause of death has been released. CBS Los Angeles live-streamed Glover's funeral service for the world to see.
Moreno and Lawson participated in the service, giving emotional remembrances of the former television anchor that let the rest of us know the person he was off camera.
Moreno celebrated Glover for their special bond as an anchor team:
"For eight years, Chauncy and I sat side by side delivering the news, but he was so much more than a co-worker. He was a friend, my confidant, my partner in crime. We were, as many would say, two peas in a pod. When you saw us on TV, we had our little routine. We had matching outfits and matching energy. And boy, did people think we were married. So to this day, if you Google his name, the top search is are Chauncy Glover and Mayra Moreno still married.
Over the years we bonded because we grew together as a team. We started weekend mornings getting to the station at three in the morning. And boy, was that so rough. We would say this is temporary. One day we'll go Monday through Friday, which we did. And we launched the station's first 3:00 newscast in the city. And that was just the beginning. On days when he was low on energy, he was like, boo! I'm gonna need you to carry this newscast today. And I was like, I got you. On days when I was low, I said, boo. It's been a week. He already knew what to do. We cared about our product. And everything that people saw on screen was real. We knew how to roll with the punches at work, with breaking news or last minute changes. We could finish each other's sentences. And if my hair was off, he would fix it. If his forehead was shiny, I would tell him.
One time, a button from his suit popped out and he was like, Myra, I'm gonna need your help, girl. And there I was, trying to figure out how am I going to get his suit together, y'all. I had a safety pin and getting him together during a commercial break, trying to count down the time. He was mind blown, y'all. I told him, baby, I'm a Mexi-CAN.
When he left for L.A. it was bittersweet. I wanted him to get that dream job, that big time TV market. But I also knew that meant breaking up the team. I joked with him saying, you're going to miss this Mexi-CAN. And sure enough, he did. And it felt so much recently when I would get a message from him simply saying I miss you, or texting a picture of us from back in the day and I would simply text him, I miss you too, boo! Since I heard about Chauncy's passing, his laughter, his smile, and his bright, joyful spirit have been on my mind constantly. Those memories, the way he could light up a room with a single joke or just a kind word, are all the things that I'm going to hold close to my heart. I take comfort in knowing that he is now at peace, embraced by God's love. I trust that he's in a place where laughter never fades and joy never ends. Until we meet again."
Here is a portion of how Lawson remembered Glover joining ABC13 KTRK:
"He was such an amazing man. He taught us how to live life to the fullest and love people to the deepest. Chauncy was born to enrich the lives of others. He made us all feel like his best friend. And as I listen to everybody else talk clearly, he learned it right here. We come to you from a city now in grief. Houston is mourning the loss of Chauncy Glover. I'm a Houstonian. I've worked at the station longer than Chauncey's been alive, if you do the math on that. Um, but I have to tell you, I've never seen so many people in such grief so devastated by the loss of a single person, including so many who never met him in person but felt like they knew him because we all saw Chauncey on screen, was just like Chauncey in person. He adopted Houston and we adopted him.
I was so blessed to get a chance to meet him on the first day, thanks to our former president and general manager, Wendy Granato. Wendy. Stand up, if you would. Just so we can see you. Wendy came to me and said, I'm interviewing this guy. We really want him to come here. He's got a lot of other offers. So close the deal for me. Melanie and I thought, close the deal, but it wasn't hard. We got a chance to sit down and talk for almost an hour, and by the time he left, we were already family. I have to thank Wendy for being so smart.
That was Chauncey's M.O. He was the new kid, but suddenly he knew more about the station than any of us. Within weeks, he knew everybody in town from the mayor, half of the Congress people to barbers and bus drivers. Right. That was Chauncey. He saw everyone as the same, and everyone was part of his family."
It was a beautiful day celebrating our wonderful friend & colleague.
Daniella Guzman, the KPRC 2 Houston evening co-anchor, took to social media to take on the TV image consultants:
"I’ve worked as a TV news, anchor and reporter for about 20 years now and these are some of the things that image consultants and talent coaches have told me throughout my career.
There are no hard feelings. Yes, it was sometimes hard to hear, but I know the intention was to make me better in many ways. I have received opinions, criticism, feedback and unsolicited comments about how I look, about my hair, about how I sound, about how I pronounce something, how I laugh, how I sit, how I stand, even how I breathe.
Everyone had an opinion, and everyone still has an opinion, and most are not shy to communicate that to me. Sometimes in a very sweet way and sometimes in hurtful and rude ways. After all these years, I realized I’m never going to make everyone happy, so I seek peace for myself and my own approval because I am confident in my skills, my knowledge, my experience… and for that...I am grateful."
Anyone who has ever worked in TV news just let out a collective cheer for Guzman's sentiments. However, according to the post, her television viewers could be harsher than the professional experts!
