Gary LaPlante has been named news director at WBZ Boston, the CBS-owned TV station in DMA No. 7. He starts Aug. 11 and comes from WFXT Boston, where he was assistant news director.
“Gary is a solid journalist with a proven track record of outstanding news coverage and compelling storytelling,” said Mark Lund, president and general manager of WBZ-WSBK. “A New England native with deep family roots in the community, Gary knows the region and what resonates with our viewers. He has been instrumental in the development of differentiated content as well as ratings growth in his previous news leadership roles, and I am confident he will have even greater success working with our outstanding WBZ-TV News team.”
LaPlante spent three years at WFXT, which is owned by Fox but is in the process of being swapped to Cox Media Group. Prior to that, he was news director at WXXA Albany. He began his career as a producer at WPRI Providence and was later a senior producer at WHDH Boston.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to lead an excellent team of journalists right here at home in Boston,” said LaPlante. “I could not be more proud than to join WBZ-TV with its long and legendary commitment to the community, and I look forward to working with the talented news staff on advancing the news product and developing the best content in the market.”
