(edited from TVSpy.com) - WINK-TV reporter Stephanie Gailhard is joining KMSP, the Fox O&O in Minneapolis, as a general assignment reporter for the morning newscasts.
“Stephanie knows how to work a story and get the very best information for the viewers. She will be a great addition providing constant updates on the biggest local stories of the morning,” KMSP vice president and news director Bill Dallman said in a statement….Cont….
Our friends at NewsBlues.com report that a ratings war has been ignited in Fort Myers between WINK and WBBH. Earlier this month, WINK started proclaiming themselves as number one (video below) in the market for every news time slow. However, competitor WBBH says HOLD on.
The problem…WINK uses Rentrack to mesaure its ratings system, while everyone else in the market uses the traditonal ratings system from Nielsen Media. Both systems score station ratings differently and survery different sizes of household samples. So, while Rentrack may show that WINK is indeed number one in every news time slow, Nielsen numbers demonstrate that this is not true. In fact, Nielsen numbers have demonstrated that WINK and WBBH have been neck to neck for the past several years, with both stations taking the top spots at different times.
The promo that WINK ran below, did not sit well with WBBH. News Director Darrel Adams tweeted a response to the WINK ad stating:
Despite what their ads say, @winknews is not #1 in every daypart. If they can’t even read a ratings book, how can they bring you the news?
According to NewsBlues.com, WINK management called the tweet “classless and low.” The tweet has been removed, but the promo still continues to run (video below).
(from TVSpy.com) – Republican Trey Radel, a former anchor at WINK-TV in Fort Myers, has been elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Radel will represent the 19th congressional district of Florida, stepping into a seat vacated when Connie Mack announced he would seek a Senate seat. Radel beat Democrat Jim Roach in the election.
Radel stepped away from WINK in 2010, saying at the time that his passion was politics and that he had never “felt more compelled than right now to get involved.” He went on to be a conservative radio host before announcing his candidacy for the House….Cont….
(from News-Press.com) – It was announced this week Miriam Zamorano will join “Fox 4 Rising” as news anchor in early October.
Zamorano most recently worked as a traffic reporter, anchor and lifestyle co-host for San Antonio’s FOX affiliate, KABB-TV, but prior to that she spent three years as a reporter, anchor and traffic reporter for 
Southwest Florida’s WINK-TV.
WFTX also announced that announced Amy Wegmann will substitute for Carley Wegner on “Fox 4 Morning Blend” while Wegner is on medical leave. Wegmann will team up with Bill Wood….Cont….
(from News-Press.com) - WINK-TV has a trio of new reporters joining their ranks.
Stephanie Susskind is already on the job. The University of Florida grad returns to the Sunshine State from WMAZ-TV, the CBS affiliate in Macon, Ga.
Coming in mid-May is Sarah Robarge, who’s leaving a position at TV3, an ABC station in Winchester, Va. Robarge is likely good at gathering information and keeping sources confidential, considering she worked as an intern at the Central Intelligence Agency’s museum.
Finally, we’ll soon welcome Kristen Skovira to the WINK reporting lineup. Previously, she has reported in several communities, including for station KGWN-TV in Cheyenne, Wyo. Interestingly, it’s a station where both her mother and father also worked in the past.
Over at NBC2, another round of changes have caught viewer’s eyes.
Chief meteorologist Haley Webb has jumped back to mornings, handling weather duties from 5 to 10 a.m. Meanwhile, meteorologist Robert Van Winkle has moved back to the evening news and can be seen at 5, 5:30, 6 and 11 p.m….Cont….
(from News-Press.com) – I couldn’t let the month of April pass without sending a hearty congratulations to WINK meteorologist Jim Farrell. The well-known weatherman marked his 30th year in Southwest Florida television this month.
He was originally hired at WBBH-TV TV-20 (long before it was known as NBC2) in April 1982. He moved over to WINK-TV in April of 1992, an even 20 years ago.
I asked Farrell how things have changed in TV weather forecasting over the past three decades….Cont….
(edited from News-Press.com) – WINK-TV is saying goodbye to several of its on-air staff.
Chief investigative reporter Melissa Yeager has accepted a position at KSHB-TV, the NBC affiliate in her hometown of Kansas City, Mo. Her last day is scheduled for May 11.
Weekend morning anchor and general assignment reporter Erin Maloney has left the station for a reporting job at Tampa’s Bay News 9.
Finally, reporter Lauren Pastrana has returned to the greater Miami-Fort Lauderdale area and a job at WIOD-AM News Radio 610. (from News-Press.com)
(from News-Press.com) – Lindsay Liepman, previously the morning anchor on WINK News, has returned from maternity leave to a new schedule. Rather than get up early with the birds, she is now anchoring the noon news and will report in the afternoon.
Meanwhile, Jennifer Stacy, who used to anchor WINK’s noon news, will now handle the morning duties, anchoring from 5-7 a.m. on WINK and from 7-9 a.m. on sister station CW6. (Of course, regular readers know that Stacy is expecting a baby in June, so how long this latest lineup will last is unknown.)
(from News-Press.com) – For folks who tune in will often be greeted by a friendly and familiar face. Former WINK anchorman Jim McLaughlin has a role on the new channel. He is anchoring the news updates weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. This is in addition to his anchoring duties on WINK News Radio.
Carlos Suarez, a reporter at WINK-TV, is heading across Alligator Alley to report for WPLG-TV, the ABC station in Miami. It will be a homecoming of sorts for Suarez, who attended college in Miami and previously worked at WSVN-TV.
Over at WBBH, Jason Pawloski, who made it through several rounds of auditions and judging during “The Great NBC2 Talent Search” back in 2008 have been pulled from the traffic desk. He will help to cover breaking news and is now the station’s new tech reporter.
(from News-Press.com) – Taking advantage of the extra space allowed by digital broadcasting, WINK-TV has created a second channel for itself. WINK News Now 24/7 has launched on the station’s digital service. The channel includes a steady stream of weather graphics, news updates and repeats of recent WINK newscasts
