Though some may grumble over Jay Leno’s new prime time deal with NBC — saying it’s an affront to “Tonight” successor Conan — San Antonio’s NBC affiliate is all smiles.

WOAI General Manager Jackie Rutledge said she and others at the station have high hopes that Jay’s new five-night-a-week show would provide a strong lead-in to the station’s 10 p.m. news.

Leno is quoted as saying his new show, slated to air at 9 p.m. Monday-Friday, starting next fall, will feature “Tonight Show” staples such as a monologue, man-on-the street bits, headlines and star guest shots.

It definitely will be cost saving for NBC — Jay himself will be the main expense — but will viewers go for essentially another “Tonight” in prime time?

“We’re excited about it,” WOAI boss Rutledge said of the announcement, adding she likes the fact the show will be “new and different,” and something other than your usual “high drama” at 9 p.m.

“People are ready for something different, entertainment rather than just another drama,” she added. “Look how well ‘Dancing with the Stars’ does on ABC.”

I’ve heard from others, however — particularly Conan O’Brien fans — who think the move is a slap in the face to Conan. “He finally moved up to ‘Tonight’ only to have to take a backseat to Jay again,” growled caller Adam Bailey.

Another viewer wondered if Conan would have to take leftovers in regards to celebrity guests.

One thing’s certain. NBC needs something to lift it out of the ratings hole. Latest November sweeps had the network coming in fourth nationally in prime-time — behind CBS, ABC and Fox — and fifth in the S.A. market behind Fox. (Univision finishes second here in prime time, between No. 1 CBS and very close third ABC.)

Is Jay the answer? He doesn’t exactly whip up on the competition here at 10:35 weeknights. November ratings had him neck and neck with David Letterman at 10:35 p.m. with a seven share of local TVs tuned in at that time.

In fact, KSAT’s syndicated newsmagazine “Inside Edition” beats both talk shows with a 10 share.

Still, it’s an interesting ploy to essentially stack so many talk shows, one atop the other — Jay, then Conan, followed by the new Jimmy Fallon.

What are your thoughts? Do you think Jay is NBC’s prime-time answer?

Comment below or via my e-mail at jjakle@express-news.net.

WOAI News 4 News Director Aaron Ramey was history as of Monday, but nobody at the station would say why.

The exit by Ramey, who led the NBC affiliate’s news operations for the past two years – surviving an ownership change and overseeing the hiring of co-anchor Elsa Ramon – comes at a critical time. November sweeps – one of three major ratings periods that determine advertising rates for news stations – is just around the corner.

Ramey’s name has been removed from the Website and an ad for a new news director was placed on the site’s job listings.

WOAI General Manager Jackie Rutledge confirmed Ramey was gone, but said she couldn’t discuss circumstances because of station policy.

So all I can do is speculate. Was his exit related to the station’s perennially third-place total homes rankings among S.A.’s three oldest network affiliates?

Was it an economic move, considering the station has had to implement a policy of two weeks of unpaid leave for employees?

In other ways, this has been a banner year for WOAI. The station’s getting ready to celebrate its 60th anniversary and recently unveiled an expensive new set and weather center, high-definition capability and other slick new changes.

Moreover, Rutledge is happy to celebrate multiple Texas Emmy (Lone Star chapter) wins by her staff. The five honors include best 10 p.m. newscast (producer Dale Blasingame); best anchor (Randy Beamer); best sportscaster (Don Harris) and best investigative report (Delaine Mathieu).

Rutledge said she’s especially thrilled by the wins for Beamer and Harris, who both celebrate their 20th anniversary with WOAI this year.

Also clutching Emmys are the creative people behind the nifty 60th anniversary promotional campaign you’ve been seeing on WOAI all year: Derrick Barrios, producer; Abe Exum, producer/animator/editor/designer; Matt Laws, producer; Elizabeth Quinones, producer, Gabriel Redondo, producer; and Jon Schwerin, producer/editor/photographer.

Other S.A. Emmy wins

Incidentally, KENS should also pass out raises to its No. 1 morning news team, which also picked up Emmys. Best morning/daytime show honors went to co-anchors Vicki Buffolino and Fred Lozano; meteorologist Paul Mireles; traffic reporter Kellie Patterson and reporter Marvin Hurst.

KWEX also raked in multiple reporting honors and Eileen Teves of KENS’ “Great Day SA” won a statuette for best magazine feature.

Sinclair Broadcast Group – the same company that owns Fox affiliate KABB – now officially owns NBC affiliate WOAI.

Sinclair’s deal to purchase six Newport TV properties around the country – including the S.A. station – was finalized Dec. 1 and already has resulted in a local management change. WOAI’s general manager of four years, Jackie Rutledge, has departed. Her last day at the station was Friday.

Her WOAI successor is one of Sinclair’s own. John Seabers, the man who, for more than 12 years, ran KABB/KMYS and made key decisions about KABB’s signature 9 p.m. newscast, is now the NBC station’s general manager.

Early this year, Seabers was promoted to group manager for Sinclair. Dean Radla took his place as KABB general manager.

Seabers, who’s worked in TV for nearly 28 years, comes to his new WOAI post with a long history with the NBC affiliate. Prior to being named as GM at KABB/KMYS in 1999, he worked as general sales manager, national sales manager and local sales manager for WOAI.   

The big question now: How will the change in management and the fact that WOAI now shares an owner with a competing local news station, KABB, impact local news personnel at both stations?

One TV news personality, who preferred to remain unnamed, said the mood around WOAI in the wake of the changes seems positive. “We had a meeting with Mr. Seabers and people from Sinclair and it was very congenial. It’s actually a relief that our new GM has lived and worked so many years in San Antonio and is so familiar with the market and WOAI.”

A former S.A. TV news heartthrob, first at KENS, then at KSAT, is returning to local television with a new TV program that caters to baby boomers.

Tony Fama, who anchored the evening news on KSAT in the early 1990s (see smaller photo) — and was known for flirtatious banter with then-KSAT weathercaster Siobhain Anders — is bringing “50PlusPrime,” a weekly TV newsmagazine, to WOAI.

The half-hour, sponsored by WellMed and CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health System, will air at 6:30 a.m. Sundays – set those DVRs! – on WOAI. Click here for a video sample of what you can expect.

The New York native felt it was time a program in San Antonio, a city he dearly loves, catered to this huge demographic – which consists of 78 million people who were born between 1946 and ’64. “That’s one in four Americans,” Fama said in a phone chat, “the single largest demo in this country.”

If you’re in that age group, Fama aims “to inform you, educate you a little bit, entertain you and, on a really good day, inspire you” with two to three stories a week on both serious and lighter topics.

Examples: He’s discovered that a lot of baby boomers are care givers for their parents. “There are 20 million of those. We’ll share resources and services to help their parents age comfortably,” Fama said. Some stories will help boomers plan for retirement and others will focus on their various lifestyle choices.  “Do you realize the average age of a Harley Davidson owner is a 50-year-old man?” he chuckled.

There’s also a fun segment, Fama, who’s now 51, said, about “what’s on your mind at age 50 plus. . .So many boomers want to travel, for instance.”

What you’ll find on the 13-episode program this Sunday? “Baby boomers are volunteering at historic levels. Culturally, they’re of a generation that was taught to give back; they’re living longer and have more discretionary income than generations past. We interview a variety of these volunteers in San  Antonio.”

Another segment shows how some boomers are helping their parents age in their own homes. For instance, one 92-year-old mom who’s deaf is benefiting from an aide who also is deaf and can help her with everyday activities and challenges at home.

What prompted Fama  – who, after leaving KSAT, went on to investigative reporting jobs at TV stations in Tampa, Fla., and Detroit, Mich. — to devote himself to boosting boomers and others of a more advanced age?

“I spent so much time with my grandmother and great aunt and uncle when I was growing up, so I think I naturally developed an affinity for older people,” he said. “No matter where I worked in the United States, I always would wind up doing stories on senior citizens.”

After several years of reporting in Detroit, he took a break and ended up developing a similar TV idea there. He believed he could expand the concept in San Antonio and eventually into syndication. It has become a labor of love for Fama, who said, “there always has been a special place in my heart for older Americans.”

Photos: Courtesy of Fama

OK, S.A. TV ladies and gents, I know it’s November sweeps. And sensationalistic teases of 10 p.m. news stories are a common practice to draw viewers in, get better audience numbers – and, ultimately, give stations the ammunition to charge higher ad rates.

However, the pixilated photo — of what looked like oral sex on the job at S.A.’s 911 dispatch office — that News 4 San Antonio flashed on its Facebook page all day Monday and was widely shared all over the social network universe went a bit too far in the misleading category.

These tantalizing words appeared with it: “This is the picture the City of San Antonio doesn’t want you to see. The News 4 Trouble Shooters uncover a pattern of misconduct involving 911 dispatchers that put lives at risk. Monday night on News 4 San Antonio at 10 p.m.”

It certainly caught my attention and I tuned in anxiously to see if this X-rated behavior really went on while folks were depending on these men and women to take life-and-death calls.

But sure enough, the pixilation did not cover up an actual sexual act, as the suggestive photo teased, but, instead, a bit of horseplay involving a man, a woman, a camera and . . . a Popsicle.

In the story, which you can watch by clicking here, reporter Jaie Avila explained that the clowning employees who posed in the sexually explicit manner with the Popsicle  then texted to others with the caption “work sucks!” “The city wouldn’t release the photo,” Avila added, “but the Trouble Shooters obtained it from a different source. The employee who took the photo was suspended. The man and woman in the picture both resigned.”

The story itself, which also reported on-duty napping and other forms of goofing off, was a good, strong, investigative piece.

As usual, though, the over-the-top tease cheapened it and prompted more eye-rolling than anything else.

Moreover, this is just the beginning, folks; expect lots more of this type of low-brow – and worse! – misleading advertising until sweeps month ends Nov. 27.

Photos: News 4

Familiar TV faces, who graced San Antonio’s local newscasts in the past, have been popping up again during the holidays.

The reappearances have prompted viewers to ask, “What gives?”

The loudest buzz surrounds the return of Leslie Komet Ausburn, known on the air as Leslie Komet, a seasoned newscaster who’s known best for her time on Channel 4 and Channel 5. Komet (in top pic) returned to WOAI this week to anchor the evening news. Look for her again tonight.

She explained that her anchoring is just temporary — for now anyway. “I was asked to fill in for Randy and Delaine during their vacations,” Komet explained. “I have really enjoyed being back on set and have heard from so many kind people happy to see me.

“After tonight’s 10 pm newscast, though, I will turn back into a newscaster pumpkin,” she said, adding that Mathieu and Beamer will be back in their seats next week. “The folks at WOAI have been fantastic to work with. It has been a wonderful short return to a business that will likely be ‘in my blood’ forever.

Komet is a busy mom, who leads her own PR firm; she is CEO of Komet Marketing Communications. However, she’s also aware that WOAI is seeking a new co-anchor to replace Elsa Ramon, who departed last week after an emotional on-air sendoff by Mathieu and Beamer.

Matari Jones-Gunter, who was known simply as Matari Jones when she reported for S.A.’s NBC affiliate several years ago, also has resurfaced. Jones, seen in photo above, has been spied doing both anchoring and reporting on WOAI’s sister station, KABB.

“(I am) just filling in for 90 days and will see what happens next,” she wrote in a message. Jones, a Texas A&M graduate, had left WOAI in 2007 when offered the post of public relations director at St. Philip’s College. She’s currently pursuing advanced degrees in Leadership Studies at Our Lady of the Lake University.

Photos: Courtesy

For more than 12 years, perky Shelly Miles has been synonymous with traffic reporting on WOAI.

That’s no longer the case. Recently, the NBC affiliate made a change in the mornings that is another example of the sharing of resources that sister stations KABB and WOAI have gone in for more and more since joining together under one owner — Sinclair Broadcasting — a little over a year ago.

Jessica Headley, the easy-on-the-eyes traffic reporter for KABB’s morning show for the past year and a half (middle photo), now is doing double duty: handling morning traffic for the two separate shows on WOAI and KABB.

The change became official Jan. 6, said Blaise Labbe, the director of news for  WOAI/KABB. Now, Miles is strictly the host of WOAI’s 10 a.m. lifestyle show, “‘San Antonio Living.”

“Shelly was ready to make a move to ‘Living’ full time and we wanted to give her that opportunity,” Labbe said. “Jessica’s been doing a great job at KABB, and we thought she would be a great addition to the morning show at WOAI.”

On one hand, this seems like a blessing for Miles. She no longer will have to wake up at the ungodly hour of 2:30 or 3 a.m. to get to WOAI for the 4:30-to-7 a.m. morning show. Now, she sets the alarm for a bit later: 4:30 or 5 a.m. to get to the station at 6 a.m. and help prepare the  ’Living’ show.

Still, any time one loses a gig or title that one has held for years, the change could result in a feeling of insecurity. Right?

“I’ve given up one hat,” Miles said in a phone chat Monday, “but I really enjoy the hat I’m wearing now.

“I was a little worried at the beginning. Do I really want this?”  the mother of two, added. “But this show (‘Living’) has been like a third child.”

Miles, who’s also a “Living” producer, now can concentrate on making the show, which has been on the air for 18 years, the best it can be. “I want it to be around for a long time.”

It sure sounds as if Sinclair is committed to keeping the show; plans, in fact, are in the works to add a co-host on “Living.”

How does Miles feel about sharing the hosting gig? “It’s good. I need someone to talk to,” she said.

Miles predicts the new hire will be in place sometime during February, which is an important local ratings month.

As for how KABB/WOAI manages the feat of having one person doing traffic for two morning shows on different stations, Labbe credited the “producing marvel” to executive producer Josh Larson and the station’s other technical experts.

He said Headley — a native of Birmingham, Ala. and a journalist with a varied background that ranges from political reporting to anchoring – does both shows from the studio in the WOAI building downtown.

The traffic updates are timed so they don’t bump into each other, he explained. “A great example of the strength of what we’re doing and our capabilities was last Friday, when she did traffic for both stations,” Labbe said. “Obviously, traffic was a mess because of the icy weather, Yet,  everything went off without a hitch. . .because of the producing of the shows and the technical expertise that was put behind it.”

Will there be more doubling up on jobs at WOAI and KABB?

“As we go forward, if we see opportunities we’ll look at those and take advantage of it,” he said. “This was one that we thought we could take advantage of.”

So far, this sharing practice hasn’t resulted in job losses of any note  at either station. However, you’ve got to wonder if folks at KABB and WOAI may be worrying about possible cuts ahead…particularly after the two staffs move in with one another under one roof, a change I’m told may happen as early as June.

Photos: SAEN and Courtesy

Hey, you might even get your face on television.

This year marks the centennial birthday of the glorious Charline McCombs Empire Theatre downtown, and the theatre will be celebrating all year.

First up: a party thrown by “San Antonio Living” at the theatre. And you’re invited to be part of the telecast.

The live TV show will air from 10 to 11 a.m. Friday on WOAI-TV.

If you’re interested in being in the audience, RSVP as soon as possible today to nbaca@cegroupinc.net or call  210-569-6910.

You’ll need to arrive at the Empire, 226 N. St. Mary’s St., by 9 a.m. Friday and stay through the end (11 a.m.).

For 100 years, the Empire has brought laughter, romance, music and drama to life on its stage. Twenty years after the theatre fell into disrepair, Las Casas Foundation helped restore it to its original beauty. Ever since, Las Casas has done its best to keep the theater gorgeous and viable.

During the hour, “Living” also will toast Las Casas’ efforts to help talented students realize their dreams by awarding performing arts scholarships to assist them in pursuing a college education.

According to the lifestyle show’s host Shelly Miles, who will  be at the helm Friday with her sometimes co-host Alanna Sarabia (see photo above), the broadcast will be a fun and lively one. It will include performances by three of Las Casas’ young scholarship winners. You’ll also be entertained by opera as well as a jazz band and be treated to a behind-the-scenes theater tour of  murals from past performances at the Empire.

Psst! “Living” also will unveil its own new mural at the theatre; and I hear it’s something to behold.

Photo: Courtesy

The bubbly new addition, who’s married to WOAI-TV morning co-anchor Michael Garofalo, also will serve as co-host and correspondent for KABB’s “Daytime at Nine,” the press release states, adding: “Daytime”  is hosted by Kimberly Crawford and Esteban Solis.

Confused yet? It also states that Claudia joins Alanna Sarabia, another  co-host on “Living” and “Daytime.”

Five co-hosts? I guess that’s one way to keep viewers on their toes.

Of course, it also might make them throw their hands up and go: “What?” I know I’m having a hard time keeping all of it straight.

In any event, Claudia, who’s keeping her radio post on Y100 as well, certainly is easy on the eyes; she’s one broadcast personality who doesn’t have, as the adage goes, “a face for radio.”

“We are thrilled to have Claudia join our Living show team,” said John Seabers, general manager of WOAI-TV and Sinclair Broadcast Group manager. “She is a natural talent, and she and Shelly have great on-air chemistry. Her fan base is already established with her Y100 radio work.”

As for her radio gig, that’s on earlier in the day; she’s part of “Miles in the Morning” starring Jeff Miles.

“Claudia joined Y100 and the ‘Miles in the Morning’ show last year,” said Y100 program director Jeff Garrison. “We’re very excited she will be joining WOAI’s ‘San Antonio’s Living’.”

Yes, now the infamous KABB-WOAI cross-promotion will extend to the radio. Claudia can be seen weekdays at 9 a.m. on “Daytime at Nine” and then at 10 a.m. on “San Antonio Living.”

Though she’ll continue on Y100, the new duties likely will cut into her radio gig, as that show runs from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.

Prior to joining Y100, Claudia served as a radio and television personality with Univision Broadcasting Group. She was best known for gracing the airwaves on The Beat 98.5 and KXTN 107.5. Born and raised in Del Rio, Claudia also worked as a journalist for the Del Rio News-Herald.

Claudia, who has a 5-year-old daughter,  married WOAI’s Michael Garofalo last year.

P.S. The couple will be celebrating another blessed event soon. Claudia and Michael are expecting their first child in the fall.

Photos: Courtesy of KCYY

Esteban Solis, co-host of a local television lifestyle show, is opening up about his prison background.

Solis, who is on KABB’s “Daytime @ Nine” four days a week alongside host Kimberly Crawford and also serves as correspondent for WOAI’s “Living,” will speak about his checkered past on both morning shows on Wednesday.

That past includes an arrest for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon as well as a conviction for DWI — both in Bexar County. His story will air at 9 a.m. on KABB and 10 a.m. on WOAI.

Why make these revelations on television? He said they’ll serve as a prelude to his new segment “Changing Lives.” The monthly pieces will highlight others who have come back from difficult beginnings.

He said he hopes his own dramatic turnaround will serve as an inspiration to people. “If I’m to tell someone else’s story,” Solis said, “I felt I should say what happened to me — that I know first-hand that you can change your life.”

Here’s the gist of Wednesday’s TV story, which was previewed by the San Antonio Express-News on Tuesday:

When Solis, 32, was a young man of 20, he was at a party at a friend’s house and a fight broke out. So, he tried to help.”I saw my friend was in a jam. I did what any friend would do,” he says. “Unfortunately the consequences that came next came with it.” The charge — aggravated assault with a deadly weapon — netted him five years probation.

Weapon? In an interview with the San Antonio Express-News. Solis said the fight involved a group of guys, and “I think a pool cue was involved — whether it was used or not, I don’t know.”

As the story relates, Solis’ legal troubles weren’t over. He was married with a couple of kids — and four years into his probation — when, while out with his wife, he got pulled over by police.

Solis was arrested for driving while intoxicated and taken to Bexar County Jail.

His probation was revoked. That, plus the DWI conviction, brought him prison time. He was sentenced to five years.

“I totally messed up. And you know what — I own it, the worst mistake I ever made in my life.

“That one put a lot of lives on hold,” adds Solis. “I knew then it was time … to man up.” He ended up serving nearly four years, then was released on parole.

The worst part was not being able to be with his family. “When I saw my daughter again, she didn’t know who I was.”

It also was tough to get hired “with that stripe on my back.” He did odd jobs, yard work, “whatever it took to get by.” Everything had been put in perspective by his prison experience, he said; he was happy to be home with his family.

Later, Solis, a native of San Antonio and an alumnus of Robert E. Lee High School, discovered he excelled in sales.

About a year ago, he met with WOAI general manager John Seabers with a business pitch for “Living,” and was introduced to a whole new career: on-air television.

“He (Seabers) cracked the door for me, gave me that one little chance that no one would give me.”

Seabers said it was a big win for WOAI/KABB as well. “I was looking for a male presence on our lifestyle shows. I knew they needed to evolve a bit, needed a little freshness to them,” Seabers told the Express-News.

“We didn’t hire Esteban because he has a background — more like we hired him despite of it. He presented a set of skills we were looking for and we chose the best person to fit in this new role that we created.”

Added Solis, who also credits his success to the support of his wife and three children: “I’m very blessed.”

Photos: Courtesy of KABB/WOAI

In case you haven’t  seen the clip that wild-fired across the Internet — and even to some TV shows — on Tuesday and Wednesday, a recap: It happened on “Good Day,” the morning show on the Fox station in Denver (Channel 31), where Broome now toils as morning meteorologist.

See the edited YouTube version here:

As part of  news coverage of the TV helicopter crash in Seattle, a camera was pointed to a computer screen — and Twitter images of the tragic event.

As anchorman Kirk Yuhnke pointed out, the first shot was that of smoke from the crash with Seattle’s iconic Space Needle in the background. But then other photos unrelated to the crash started popping up: “Edward Scissorhands,” a food photo and . . . the graphic shot of the male body part.

“We’ll just ignore that,” the anchor said with impressive stoicism, while the others sitting with him, including weathercaster Broome on the far right, winced and covered their mouths in horror.

“It was a little bit of shock on the air,” Broome told me in a phone chat Thursday morning. Still, she was surprised, she said, when the clip went viral so fast.

Most people seemed to get the bigger kick out of the faces of the news team afterward, she said, including her own astonished expression.

She said the incident stemmed from the control room and not the computer pad that Yuhnke was holding. “It was totally an accident. Things happen when you’re on live TV,” Broome said, adding no one was fired at KDVR as a result but “new procedures” have been implemented.

”You’ve got to take it in stride, you have to laugh at yourself,” she said of her widely-exposed reaction.

After the broadcast,  as you’d expect, the Fox31 KDVR Facebook page was full of jokes and puns relating to the incident.

Also posted on the KDVR page is an apologetic statement from the Fox affiliate: “While reporting breaking news about the crash of the KOMO-TV helicopter in Seattle, Fox 31 Denver accidentally broadcast an offensive photo while scrolling live through a Twitter feed of pictures from the crash scene.

“The photo was mistakenly broadcast by our control room. It did not come from the tablet many viewers saw being used by one of our anchors.

“We apologize for the inadvertent broadcast of the image and we are taking immediate steps to prevent such an accident from happening again.”

Of course, it could happen again, on a whole slew of  stations all over the country that constantly supplement their news reports with social media images. Maybe we’ll all learn a lesson from this and take more care when it comes to using stuff from Twitter, Facebook and the like.

That said, however, it was pretty funny.

Yes, David Letterman, the last of our veteran late-night hosts, is retiring — but not before he featured both S.A. anchorman Randy Beamer and a fun jab at the local Bigfoot hoax.

For more on the con by showman Rick Dyer, who had claimed he shot the creature in the Alamo City, read the most recent of Kolten Parker’s  mySA.com stories on the shenanigans here.

Back to Letterman . . . During his Wednesday monologue, he ran a segment titled “We didn’t see that coming.”

On popped a clip of  WOAI’s Beamer and his announcement about S.A.’s Bigfoot.

Watch it  here  for a quick laugh.

(Hint: It starts at 1:22 into Dave’s monologue.)

The gag is a further reminder of why we’ll miss the acerbic late-night funnyman, who announced on Thursday’s show that he’ll be leaving his CBS job sometime in 2015.

“What this means now, is that Paul and I can be married,” Letterman, 66, quipped,  referring to his bandleader and sidekick for more than 30 years, Paul Schaffer.

CBS, courtesy

“John’s torn. He loves San Antonio,” Blaise Labbe, director of news for WOAI/KABB, said Tuesday. In turn, the station will sorely miss Gerard’s all-out devotion to delivering as accurate a weathercast as possible for the people of South Texas, Labbe indicated.

Labbe said Gerard’s family — including his wife and grown children — still reside in Florida, where Gerard has a business. And the commuting back and forth has been difficult on the weatherman.

Gerard’s last day will be May 30. His new job will have him forecasting at WFOR-TV in Miami. Labbe said the development “happened so fast” that it may be a while before the station names a new chief meteorologist.

The 5, 6 and 10 p.m. meteorologist had the hard task of replacing popular Jennifer Broome after her WOAI ouster in early 2010.

It didn’t take long, however, for Gerard to win over viewers with his friendly delivery, contagious warmth and entertainingly giddy interaction with Randy Beamer, Delaine Mathieu and others on the news.

Most of all, News 4 audiences will miss Gerard’s diligent weather work, which included the creation of the station’s “4 Zone Forecast,” consisting of  brief, helpful forecasts for each of the various regions in and around San Antonio.

Photo: WOAI

Cynthia Lee (in photo above with Mike Valdes) is exiting  her second go-round as 9 p.m. news co-anchor on the Fox affiliate to spend more quality time with her crooner husband, Joe Caruso, and darling little girl Catarina.

Her last day will be May 21, when the latest ratings book wraps up.

She’ll also pursue a new business venture — as  a full-time broker for Transwestern, a top real estate brokerage in San Antonio. “Many people may not realize I’m a licensed Realtor,” Lee explained. “I have been juggling two careers and motherhood for quite some time.”

This is the second time Lee has left the anchor post next to Michael Valdes on the Fox affiliate’s signature 9 p.m. news broadcast. Previously, she waved goodbye in 2009, following eight years as co-anchor, to dedicate her time to producing a motivating children’s television show and accompanying website.

Lee returned to KABB in early 2012 for a job as weekend co-anchor. She took over the weekday broadcast after the station lost beloved anchorwoman Karen Martinez to cancer.

“”KABB has been my second family since 1998 and I’m grateful for all the opportunities they’ve given me,” Lee said.

“As much as I enjoy delivering the news nightly,” she added, “this  change will allow me to enjoy more of life’s precious moments, like tucking my daughter in bed at night.”

Cynthia and Joe welcomed their first child, Catarina, more than two years ago.

This marks the third major departure announcement at Sinclair-owned sister stations KABB/WOAI over the space of five months. First, chief WOAI anchorwoman Elsa Ramon left to join her husband in California.

Then, this week, WOAI said chief meteorologist John Gerard would be leaving to take a TV post in Miami that would allow him to be with his wife and kids in South Florida. And now, Lee says she’s leaving.

John Seabers, Sinclair group manager and WOAI’s general manager,  said he expects decisions on the three replacements for the departing news personalities to be finalized within the next two weeks. Stay tuned.

Photo: KABB

Flores, a popular weather staple on San Antonio TV for decades — first on CBS affiliate KENS during the station’s heyday in the ’80s, ’90s and the early part of this decade, then on the city’s NBC affiliate — was named WOAI’s new chief meteorologist Thursday.

“I’m thrilled and excited,” Flores, 59, said, adding he’s committed to giving viewers well-produced weather shows as well as much more in-depth and relevant information than they can find on their cell phones, computer or anywhere else.

The station’s morning weathercaster since 2011, Flores soon will succeed the departing John Gerard, who’ll rejoin his family in South Florida and handle forecasts for the CBS-owned station in Miami.

Starting May 27, Flores will helm all the evening forecasts –at 5, 6, 6:30 and 10 p.m. He also indicated that the station will continue delivering its signature “4 Zone Forecasts”‘ (helpful mini forecasts for each of the various regions in and around San Antonio).

“Three years ago I found a new television home with News 4 San Antonio,” Flores added. “I have had a wonderful time working with some of the nicest and most professional people in the business. . .I look forward to leading an experienced team of television meteorologists that will work hard to make sure our viewers are safe and well aware of the weather around them 365 days a year!”

Until a replacement is found, KABB’s Mike Hernandez will handle mornings and Siobhain Anders will deliver WOAI’s weekend forecasts.

Flores, who grew up here and attended Harlandale High before leaving for college at the University of Texas in Austin, is lauded by WOAI as “the  most recognized face for weather in San Antonio.”

He is that — as well as a warm, approachable guy off the air who doesn’t hesitate to greet folks and take photos with them when asked.

Another personal plus of the new job? Flores can sleep in soon, instead of waking up at the ungodly hour of 2 a.m. weekdays to rush to the station to prepare for WOAI’s morning show. “I can have breakfast with my wife now,” he said, although he’ll miss seeing his two grown children and four grandchildren in the evenings.

Photos: WOAI, courtesy

SAN ANTONIO — Change seems to be the lead story at San Antonio TV sister stations WOAI and KABB these days — with the latest headline involving the Fox affiliate’s chief anchor replacement for the departing Cynthia Lee.

She’s Elisa Amigo, an anchor/reporter out of Cleveland. An  Emmy winner for Best Weekend News, Amigo also was honored as one of  Northeast Ohio’s top “40 under 40” Hispanic leaders.

The lovely new hire with the striking eyes will team up with the station’s 9 p.m. news anchor staple, Michael Valdes, starting May 19.

Lee is leaving the TV news game to spend more time with family as well as pursue a career as a full-time broker for Transwestern real estate brokerage.

In her seven years at Fox affiliate WJW-TV, Amigo has covered a wide array of stories including the emotional return home of the three Cleveland women held hostage for more than a decade and the mass shootings at Chardon High School

“As a journalist, she’s a real pro,” Dean Radla, KABB general manager said, “but most importantly, I feel our viewers will find her very personable and genuine, as well as a great on-air partner for Michael Valdes.”

Elisa grew up in Marietta, Ohio, and attended the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. She graduated cum laude and majored in broadcast journalism with a double-minor in Spanish and political science.

Photo: KABB

SAN ANTONIO — Star visit alert! Next week, San Antonio will host a free screening and Q&A with several of the actors on the S.A.-set TV series, “The Night Shift.”

But first, get acquainted with the medical drama by watching the premiere at 9 p.m. Tuesday on NBC. Read my preview of “Night Shift” and descriptions of their characters here.

Scheduled to appear in S.A. are four of the show’s leads — Freddy Rodriguez, Jill Flint, Daniella Alonso and Brendan Fehr — as well as executive producer Gabe Sachs.

It will happen at 7 p.m. on June 6 at City Base Cinema, 2623 S.E. Military Drive. A screening of two episodes, one of which will be new (not yet seen by TV viewers), will be followed by a Q&A with the celebrity panel. The event will be moderated by WOAI-TV anchorwoman Evy Ramos.

Attendees who show a military ID will receive a signed “Night Shift” poster.

To RSVP, e-mail request to SPT_RSVP@SPE.SONY.COM

Seats will be available on a first-reply basis.

That’s why Delaine Mathieu, WOAI’s 5 p.m. co-anchor, wasn’t in her seat Monday. In fact, she’ll likely be out all week, both she and Blaise Labbe, the station’s director of news, confirmed Monday.

“Sitting is definitely an issue.  I’m on pain meds right now so reading is an issue as well…not to mention driving!” Mathieu said in a message.

Apart from her tailbone injury, she also has “a cut and a bad bruise on my right arm,” she said — all sustained during the Gladiator Rock ‘n Run on Saturday.

“There was a rock sticking up through the slide,” the athletic newcaster explained.  “Several others had to go the hospital, too.  The doctor told me one guy cut his face, another person cut their scalp and a girl cut open her hand…all on that slide!”

She added she won’t be participating in that race again.

According to Labbe, new WOAI anchorwoman Evy Ramos will be filling in during Mathieu’s recovery.

Here’s to a speedy one, Delaine!

Photo: WOAI

Ortiz waved goodbye to the reporting side of her job Wednesday night, but will continue to co-anchor weekends with Jaie Avila through July 13.

“It was her decision,” Blaise Labbe, director of news for WOAI/KABB, said. “She wanted to spend more time with her family. Before she signed her last contract, she had said her husband wanted her to be home more with her kids — a son, 6, and daughter, 9 — but she decided to stay on the job.”

However, when the contract came up this go-round, she opted to focus on parenthood.

Ortiz, 42, said her goal to be a TV journalist was kindled at age 13. “I’ll miss the story-telling and the advocacy — being the voice of so many people,” Jackie said in a phone chat. It also will be difficult to leave behind “my teammates,” she said: Jaie, weathercaster Siobhain Anders, sportscasters David Chancellor and Don Harris.

Labbe said WOAI certainly will miss her. “I’ve always thought Jackie was a really good reporter. She relates to people really well. When I worked at KENS, I thought she was one of the strengths over here.

“But it comes to a point when, because of he demands of your job, you miss a lot in your kids’ lives,” Labbe added.

Until the local NBC affiliate hires a permanent replacement, Grace White, weekend co-anchor at sister station KABB, will fill in next to Avila on WOAI weekends, leaving Ted Garcia to anchor solo Saturdays/Sundays on the Fox affiliate.

Photo: WOAI

One of TV’s most vocal watchdog groups is calling on NBC to change the air time of Sunday’s Miley Cyrus concert special and rate the program for mature audiences only. . .or not broadcast it at all.

But San Antonio’s NBC affiliate, WOAI, is sure its network won’t be pulling — or delaying — the 8 p.m. two-hour special, “Miley Cyrus: Bangerz Tour.”

WOAI general manager John Seabers went on to assure viewers that the program “will follow FCC guidelines absolutely.”

“Is she going to do twerking or something like that?” he added. “I don’t know. But my guess is that because this is controlled in a different way, you’ll see a more broadcast friendly program.”

The head of the Parents Television Council (PTC) doesn’t agree, pointing out that Cyrus is famous for her sexually provocative material and that 9 p.m. — 8 p.m. in San Antonio and a large percentage of the rest of the country — is still considered family viewing time, when such objectionable programs shouldn’t air.

“Miley Cyrus built her career on the backs of teens, ‘tweens’ and their parents. But the content of her Bangerz Tour is wildly inappropriate for children and families, and NBC knows it,” PTC president Tim Winter noted in a press release. “Given that her concert performances have been sexually graphic, laced with profanity and celebrating illegal drug use, NBC should reconsider its decision to air this program on the publicly owned airwaves altogether. But if NBC does air the program, then the network has an affirmative obligation not to air it during a time when children are likely to be in the audience, and they must rate the program TV-MA.”

In the same press release, PTC included media descriptions of the  Cyrus concert, such as a quote from the New York Daily News, which states that her Bangerz performances started with a parental advisory, warning explicit content, before she went on “to ride an oversized hotdog, simulate a sex act on a dancer dressed as Bill Clinton and wear a costume printed with cannabis leaves.”

Though WOAI’s Seabers acknowledged he hasn’t seen the special — which is described as a mix of performance footage from Cyrus’ concerts in Spain and Portugal as well as behind-the-scenes footage of the singer engaging with her crew and fans — he’s confident that the over-the-air broadcast won’t be over-the-top offensive.

“What she does for a broadcast television station is obviously going to be different from what she does in her live shows. . .or on MTV,” Seabers said. “We operate with different standards, and artists and producers are well aware of that fact.”

Besides, he reminded, it’s not live, so “there are elements of constraint. It’s probably produced more with an eye for a youth audience.”

In any event,  he added, “parents have the ultimate control.”

In other words, if you’re concerned, either keep your kids from watching or watch with them so you can monitor the content.

Photo: Getty