Updated 12/6 with WSYR press release -- SYRACUSE -- Nearly seven months after Jim Tortora vacated the News Director's office at NewsChannel 9 (WSYR-TV), there's now word of a new leader for the ABC affiliate's news department. Reliable sources tell CNYTVNews.com that the new boss will be Rob Cartwright, who comes to Syracuse after three years as Assistant ND at The CW affiliate in Dallas.
It didn't take long to find Cartwright on Facebook, where his profile includes a brief rundown of his TV news career:
We're told WSYR-TV management informed staff of Cartwright's hiring on Friday, and he is expected to start on January 4. He also has a Twitter account, which we've already added to our @cnyradio/tv-people Twitter list.
Added 12/6: WSYR-TV issued the following press release to local media outlets on December 6, 2011:
NEWSCHANNEL 9 WSYR HIRES NEWS DIRECTOR
NewsChannel 9 WSYR VP/General Manager Theresa Underwood has announced the hiring of Rob Cartwright as News Director of NewsChannel 9, WSYR 9.2 and 9wsyr.com.
Cartwright comes to Syracuse from the Dallas/Fort Worth market, where he was Assistant News Director at KDAF-TV. A graduate of Texas State- San Marcos, Cartwright previously worked at WFAA-TV in Dallas and WJLA-TV in Washington, DC. And though he’s spent much of his career in Texas, Cartwright is no stranger to the Northeast. He hails from New Canaan, CT.
WSYR VP/General Manager Theresa Underwood says Cartwright “will add a new dimension to our staff and management team.” Underwood previously announced the appointment of NewsChannel 9 staffers Roger Mirabito to the position of Assistant News Director and Jessica Purchiaroni as Executive Producer.
Cartwright was a key member of newsrooms that won a regional Emmy Award and Edward R. Murrow Awards on both the regional and national levels. He has also worked as a field producer on several stories of national interest, including the 2000 Florida Election Controversy, the Timothy McVeigh execution, the Virginia Tech shootings, and Republican and Democratic National Conventions in 2000 and 2004
After moving to Syracuse, Rob Cartwright is scheduled to join NewsChannel 9 on January 4th.
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[...] [h/t CNYRadio.com] [...]