Landing in the Corner Office

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Longtime WGN (Chicago) News Director and short time head of Nexstar’s News Nation, Jennifer Lyons has landed in the corner office.

Lyons was tapped by Nexstar to oversee the company’s new cable news outlet News Nation.

It never went to plan and Lyons bolted when Nexstar started taking News Nation in a direction in which she didn’t like.

Well, now she is back in the game and is becoming the new General Manager at CBS O&O, WBBM in Chicago.

“We feel extremely fortunate to have someone like Jennifer, who has a proven track record of success in Chicago, joining as the leader of our team, products and platforms at CBS 2,” said President and Co-Head of CBS News and Stations Wendy McMahon. “Jennifer knows this market like few others, understands what it takes to develop and maintain meaningful relationships with the diverse communities that make up this city and is deeply committed to growing our brands and business for the future.”

“I also want to congratulate the CBS 2 Chicago news department which, under the leadership of News Director Jeff Harris, continues to produce award-winning investigations and best-in-class news content that have captured local and national attention, including this week’s announcement that WBBM won the National Edward R. Murrow Award for Overall Excellence. Congratulations to the team on your exceptional coverage and well-deserved recognition,” McMahon added.

It seems odd that McMahon would comment on the News Director at the station, while announcing a new GM. Reading between the lines tells me that Harris put his name in the hat for the GM job and didn’t get it. So, McMahon threw him a bone in the Lyons announcement.

Lyons takes over a station that has been in last place in the news ratings for years.

While she is certainly a very good hire for WBBM, to say that she has her work cutout for herself is a major understatment.

Just saying….