Posted by chicagomedia.org on January 02, 2009 at 10:55:03:
Big shoes to fill
Ch. 7's Thomas is a 'heavy lifter' who's ready to replace Andy Shaw
January 2, 2009
BY LEWIS LAZARE Sun-Times Columnist
Talent comes. And talent goes in the broadcast news business. But when you're the top-rated TV news operation in town, talent comings and goings take on added significance. Especially when a key talent such as Andy Shaw decides to retire as chief political reporter at ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7. To replace Shaw, WLS President and General Manager Emily Barr and News Director Jennifer Graves picked a known quantity in Charles Thomas, who has been covering politics and many other stories at the station for 17 years. We asked Thomas to share with us some thoughts about his new role in the WLS news department as he prepares to take over Shaw's job later this month:
Q. Did you actively seek the post of chief political reporter at WLS, or did station management reach out to you?
A. I let Emily Barr and Jennifer Graves know I was interested after reading in Robert Feder's column last summer that Andy planned to retire at or around the end of the year. I remember telling Jennifer that I was not convinced he'd actually go through with it, and Andy will tell you I was one of the people who spent the most time trying to talk him out of it. I realized how important Andy has been to our success. He is at the top of his game as a journalist, and it seemed as though his best work was ahead of him. It wasn't until around Labor Day that I realized he really was going to leave WLS.
Q. What does it take to be a good political reporter?
A. Telling the audience what happened is only the beginning task for a good political reporter. Every story must put the event in at least recent historical perspective, and it must inform the viewer/listener/reader why he or she should care. Also, a good political reporter must avoid the jargon of government and use simple, straightforward language. And on television, we have to find ways to illustrate political stories with video other than talking heads and legislative chambers. Television producers don't do enough political stories on their newscasts because I've heard them say they're ''boring.'' My challenge will be to make them as interesting as they truly are with good writing and visits to the neighborhoods affected by political decisions.
Q. What about Chicago and Illinois politics interests you the most?
A. Are you kidding? Chicago is absolutely the center of the political universe. At least it has been that way for the past six months or so. That's what's so amazing about this transition for me. Who would believe the WLS political reporter would retire in the middle of all of this? I am blessed to be in the right place at the right time.
Q. Do you feel more pressure taking on the political reporter role at the top-rated news station in town than you would doing this job at another local TV outlet?
A. Understand that there is a very high standard for reporters at WLS, and I believe that is the reason we have been the top-rated television station in Chicago for over two decades. I have always considered myself to be one of the ''heavy lifters'' who has worked up to and, at times, beyond those standards since coming here from ABC News in 1991. I am a ''classically trained'' journalist (bachelor's in journalism, Missouri, 1973) who has 35 years in the profession. I have covered wars and riots and assorted natural and manmade disasters too numerous to remember. Believe me, I have seen my share of pressure.
Q. What, if anything, do you admire about the soon-to-depart Andy Shaw and his approach to covering local politics?
A. Andy never stops. I like to think of myself as being a bit more efficient in my approach, but I appreciate and will always remember his energy. Andy also is one of the fairest reporters I've ever encountered. He will always hear the other side and do his best to understand it and include it in his reporting.