CBS O&O Fires 87 Year Old Anchor

3 days ago, FTVLive told you that 87 year old Chicago Anchor Harry Porterfield had finally retired from WBBM.

That was the line that WBBM was giving, but Porterfield says he didn't retire, he was fired.

“When they tell you that your contract is not being renewed, that means you’re fired. I can’t think of any other interpretation to give to that: ‘We don’t want you working here. Your contract will not be renewed.’ That means you’re fired.”

The station informed Porterfield that he was not being renewed and they wanted him to go along with the whole "I'm retiring" thing. But, Porterfield says he had second thoughts about that.

“I had second thoughts about going along because it wasn’t true,” Porterfield said. “As I was told, they wanted to protect themselves from something, and that it was important for me to say I was ‘retiring.’ But not important to me that way. They’re saying it. I’ve never said that.

Robert Feder reports that WBBM sources said Porterfield had agreed to a retirement scenario in the past, and that by refusing to show up at the end last week, he was “thumbing his nose” at his colleagues and management. “It was not the honorable way to go,” one insider grumbled.

Either way, the station "retired" him last week.

If there are any stations looking for an 87 year old Anchor, we know where you can find one.

Just saying....