TEGNA8 adds Charlotte Huffman to investigative unit (updated)
10/20/15 12:56 PM
By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
After naming Sonia Azad earlier this month to replace Janet St. James as head medical reporter, Dallas-based TEGNA8 will attempt to fill another major void by hiring Charlotte Huffman for the investigative reporter position left open by the Oct. 9th retirement of Byron Harris.
Huffman, a native of Oklahoma, spent the previous two years as a gumshoe at CBS-owned KYW-TV in Philadelphia. She left the station early this month, saying in an Oct. 13th post on her Facebook page, “Hey Philly! Yes, it is true! Although I have loved my time at CBS3 I have left Philadelphia in order to pursue another opportunity.”
Philly.com says Huffman “confirmed” that her contract was not renewed by KYW, but that she left on “great” terms anyway. Huffman, in a subsequent email reply, said that’s inaccurate.
“KYW was going to renew my contract but I already had an offer from WFAA,” she said. “I’ve always wanted to return to Dallas and work for WFAA (which is owned by TEGNA).”
TEGNA8 news director Carolyn Mungo, who did not return an email inquiry from unclebarky.com, told the industry website tvspy.com that Huffman is scheduled to start in mid-December.
Before joining KYW, Huffman worked at WNCN-TV in Raleigh, NC. She’s a graduate of Southern Methodist University in Dallas and also has been a reporter for KETK-TV in Tyler, TX and KDFX-TV in Wichita Falls, TX.
“This move really brings me full circle,” Huffman said. “In journalism school, I used to watch Byron’s investigations and think, ‘That’s exactly what I want to do one day.’ Now I’ll be doing it in a community that I already know and love. It’s an honor to be filling the position of someone who inspired me to get into this business in the first place. Do I have some big shoes to fill? Absolutely. But am I up for the challenge? You bet.”
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