Cleveland anchor is 6′s new sports director

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David Pingalore, weekend sports anchor at Cleveland’s WOIO-CBS 19, has been hired as the new sports director at WKMG-Local 6. Sentinel TV Guy Hal Boedeker reports that Pingalore will join the station in late April.

Boedeker wrote: "David is a creative, aggressive and original sportscaster with a distinctive personality," news director Susan Forbes said in a staff memo. "I firmly believe he will be a factor in redefining the sports franchise not only at this station but in this town."

Pingalore graduated from Jacksonville University, where he played on the school’s Division I golf team through his college years. He interned with WTVT-Fox 13 in Tampa and also worked at WJKS, the former ABC affiliate in Jacksonville. Read Pingalore’s WOIO bio here.

At WKMG, Pingalore replaces Todd Lewis, whose contract was not renewed. If Pingalore needs any inside info on WKMG, he can ask David Wittman. The former Channel 6 anchor is the 4, 6 and 11 p.m. anchor at WOIO.

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WFTV: Eyewitness the news moves

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Some familiar faces are leaving and some new faces are arriving at Central Florida’s top-rated Eyewitness News. Here’s the rundown:

> Weekend evening meteorologist Arch Kennedy has been named the new chief met at WZTV-Fox 17 in Nashville. He went on air for the first time at WFTV on Aug. 13, 2004 — the day Hurricane Charley hit Central Florida. The station will fill Kennedy’s position and is currently looking for a replacement.

> Jodie Fleischer has been hired selected as a general assignment reporter by Atlanta’s WSB-ABC 2, the Cox sister station to WFTV.

> Josh Einiger is now reporting for WNBC-4 in New York. (Note: Earlier I mistakenly wrote that state Sen. Gary Siplin made Einiger a local legend by repeating "I love you Josh. I love you Josh" during an interview. The Siplin interview was with former WFTV reporter Josh Wilson, who now works for FEMA. Sorry about that.) And former weekend

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Wilson next to go from WKMG mornings

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The extreme makeover of Local 6′s First News morning show continues. A insider says employees were told that that traffic reporter Secily Wilson will be leaving the newscast on April 14.

Technically, Wilson works for Traffic.Com but has been part of the WKMG morning show for several years. In January 2005, she suffered a stroke while on the air. After further examination, doctors determined she actually had several minor strokes. She worked with a speech pathologist and returned to work.

For those keeping count, for a much-touted morning show that once had Mark McEwen, Jacquie Sosa, Wilson and meteorologist Larry Mowry, only Mowery will remain after April 14. Sure appears a clean sweep is in the forecast, though.

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WKMG reaches exit deal with Sosa

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Although morning anchor Jacquie Sosa is out at Local 6, she will remain on contract through most of the year but you won’t see her on air again. That’s the word from the Sentinel’s Scott Maxwell, who quotes WKMG GM Henry Maldonado as saying he and Sosa — still of maternity leave — reached the deal as part of a "mutual agreement."

Wrote Maxwell, "Maldonado wouldn’t say much else about the split with Sosa, who did a yeoman’s job carrying the mornings after Mark McEwen suffered a stroke and had to take leave. But he did say that he wants to center his station’s early day offerings around Lauren Rowe."

Maldonado said he is also close to signing a deal with a new sports anchor to replace Todd Lewis, whose contract wasn’t renewed.

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Local 6 hires sports anchor for morning show

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Erick Weber, who has appeared on The Tonight Show in comedy skits and most recently worked at WTMJ-NBC 4 in Milwaukee as a sports anchor, will join WKMG as its new morning and noon anchor, according to a Local 6 insider. He replaces Jacquie Sosa, whose contract was not renewed. His first day on the air at WKMG will be April 26.

Weber worked in Milwaukee for three years as sports anchor at WTMJ. He was an elementary school teacher when he started interning at KESQ in Palm Springs, Calif. He later became weekend sports anchor for a year and half at KNDU/KNDO-NBC in Tri-Cities/Yakima, Wash., before making the move to Milwaukee.

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Internet sex sting played differently on TV

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Some quick midweek notes:

– The Internet sex sting in Polk County that resulted in the arrests of 28 men — including three Disney workers and one technician for Local 6 — was widely reported on local TV news. But the way the stations reported it varied greatly. Video on WKMG’s Local6.com site shows the station did not try to downplay its employee’s arrest. Actually, it’s the Disney connection that’s downplayed in my opinion. It’s obviously an embarrassing incident, but WKMG made the right call in not trying to hide the arrest of one of its own. WESH.com video shows Channel 2 focused on the three Disney workers. Video on WFTV.com shows Eyewitness News reported the Disney workers and the WKMG worker in its package. A co-worker told me she thought WFTV was overplaying the WKMG’s worker’s connection to the sting, but based on the video here I would have to disagree.

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