Fred Young, senior vice president for news for Hearst-Argyle Television, will retire from the company at the end of the year, the broadcast company announced today. Young, who will retain a consulting and advisory role with the company, will be replaced by Brian Bracco, currently corporate vice president, news at Hearst-Argyle.
Young oversees news operations at Hearst-Argyle's stations in 26 markets in 22 stations and many of the corporation's stations are considered leaders in news coverage, and just about as often in Nielsen ratings
The Hearst-Argyle station group has earned an four consecutive Walter Cronkite Awards for excellence in television political journalism, in recognition of election-coverage initiatives championed by Young beginning in 2000. The station group has also won Peabody, the DuPont-Columbia Journalism Award the Edward R. Murrow Award and the NAB's Service to America Award. In March 2002, Young received a First Amendment Service Award from the Radio-Television News Directors Foundation.
Young joined WTAE Pittsburgh, a Hearst Broadcasting station, in 1962, and stayed with the formation of Hearst-Argyle in 1997.
Bracco, who has served as VP, News and, previously, a group news executive for Hearst-Argyle since 1997, will remain at his current office located at Hearst-Argyle’s KMBC-TV, the ABC affiliate in Kansas City. He joined Hearst Broadcasting in 1987 as KMBC’s news director.
Joining the group news team will be Barbara Maushard, currently news director at Hearst-Argyle’s WESH-TV, the NBC affiliate in Orlando. Maushard’s career with Hearst-Argyle has taken her through four of the company’s stations; prior to WESH, she was at WISN-TV, the Hearst-Argyle Milwaukee ABC affiliate which, during her term there as news director, earned a national Peabody Award for investigative journalism. She will relocate to Hearst-Argyle’s New York City headquarters and, as VP, News, will work with Bracco and Candy Altman, also a VP, News.
