Fox Chicago shuffles anchors on noon, weekend newscasts

Anna Davlantes and Kori Chambers

Readers of this blog saw it coming more than a month ago, but Fox Chicago finally made it official: Anna Davlantes and Kori Chambers will anchor the station’s noon newscast, starting October 8.

While continuing to host Good Day Chicago (which Chambers anchors with Dawn Hasbrouck from 5 to 7am, and Davlantes anchors with Corey McPherrin from 7 to 10am), the duo will replace noon anchor Patrick Elwood, who’ll shift to feature reporting in the morning. Elwood had been anchoring solo at noon since Jan Jeffcoat left in July.

Fox Chicago also promoted reporter Amara Walker to co-anchor the 9pm Saturday and Sunday newscasts with Larry Yellen, starting October 6. Walker, who was just singled out here as the station’s “brightest new addition,” signed on as a per-diem reporter in July after seven years at WTVJ-TV, the NBC-owned station in Miami.

With chief meteorologist Bill Bellis adding noon weather duties, Tammie Souza will shift from noon to weekends.

Also on the move is reporter Darlene Hill, who’ll join political editor Mike Flannery as co-host of Fox Chicago Sunday, the political talk show airing at 8:30am Sundays. Dane Placko will focus on investigative reporting during the week.

No word yet on when the station plans to launch its long-delayed 5pm weekday newscast. Davlantes and Chambers are said to be in line to anchor that newscast as well.

Mike Renda, vice president and general manager of Fox Chicago, would not respond to requests for comment on the changes Monday. His office referred calls to a Fox Television Stations publicist in New York.