Steve Schwaid, vice president of digital content at Meredith, has been named vice president and news director at WTXF Philadelphia, announced Patrick Paolini, the vice president and general manager of the Fox-owned station.
He starts in early August and will be responsible for "overseeing all editorial, business and administrative functions for FOX 29 news," said Fox in a statement. Schwaid, 57, replaces Kingsley Smith, who took over the newsroom at Fox's KTTV Los Angeles.
"Steve's depth of local news experience and proven record of success in Philadelphia made him the ideal leader for our newsroom," said Paolini. "He is the right person to expand upon our station's success as a news leader in this market."
In addition to overseeing Meredith's digital content affairs, Schwaid was news director at WGCL Atlanta and played a role in that station growing its presence in market No. 8.
As Paolini notes, Schwaid has worked in Philly, having been news director at WCAU before he was named senior vice president of strategic growth and content initiatives for NBC Universal. During his nine year tenure at NBC, Schwaid held various roles, including vice president of news programming for NBC's owned stations.
Earlier today, Schwaid may have hinted at a move on Twitter. "Busy day ahead - a lot of news to come," he tweeted.
His official statement reads: "I'm extremely excited about working for Fox 29 and coming back home to Philadelphia. I look forward to taking WTXF's news operation to the next level by delivering strong, relevant and compelling news."
