NBCU Taps Eric Lerner To Run WNBC
Folks at NBCUniversal are accustomed to seeing execs from Philadelphia rise in the ranks. But unlike most of those promotions, the new General Manager at WNBC, the company’s flagship TV station, isn’t a transplant from parent company Comcast. Eric Lerner, who runs Philly-based O&Os WCAU and WWSI (a Telemundo station), will take over the New York operation beginning April 13.
He succeeds Michael Jack, who plans to retire after five years on the job.
Lerner “has done a great job revitalizing WCAU and making it a strong and very competitive station in a difficult market,” says NBCU Owned Television Stations President Valari Staab, to whom he’ll report. “With his vision and leadership, I know Eric will continue to build on the momentum generated by Michael Jack and his team and take WNBC to the next level.”
In Philadelphia, Lerner focused on local news and weather. The operation added a helicopter and other newsgathering technology and strengthened its investigative unit, the company says. After NBCU bought the Telemundo station in 2013, Lerner drove the launch of its first newscast.
Prior to his tenure at NBCU, Lerner ran Seattle CBS affiliate KIRO and ABC-owned KFSN in Fresno. He also was News Director at Chicago’s WLS, Seattle’s KING and Wichita’s KWCH.
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