We not only broadcast the news, some developments in our industry and transitions of local broadcasters sometimes becomes news. We collect and share it with our members in case they missed something, and because it’s part of the living history of our business.
After more than 30 years on WJXT’s evening news broadcasts, anchor Mary Baer and chief meteorologist John Gaughan both retired at the end of May 2023.
Donna Deegan, who co-anchored WTLV’s evening newscasts for 24 years, was elected mayor of Jacksonville in May 2023 and was sworn in on July 1.
Voters also elected former WJKS and WJXT anchor Joyce Morgan as Property Appraiser and long-time WTLV reporter Ken Amaro was elected to Jacksonville City Council.
George Winterling died on June 21, 2023, at age 81. Hired at WJXT as Jacksonville’s first broadcast meteorologist in 1962, he became legendary for helping to invent many of the tools that evolved TV weathercasting into an essential part of every local newscast.
Ben Frazier, a trailblazing TV journalist in the 1970s who later became one of Jacksonville’s leading crusaders for racial justice, died June 24, 2023 — one day after his 73rd birthday.
WATCH: From broadcaster to changemaker: The life and legacy of Ben Frazier