Chicago’s top-rated newsroom has a new leader.
On Tuesday, WLS-Ch. 7 announced that the station is promoting one of its assistant news directors, Doug Whitmire, to be the station’s vice president of news, effective Aug. 5.
A 21-year veteran of the station and a graduate of Bowling Green State University, Whitmire, 45, joined ABC 7 in 2003 as a news writer and producer. He was promoted in 2008 to executive producer of the station’s morning newscasts and promoted again six years later to oversee the 10 p.m. newscast.
Whitmire is set to succeed Jennifer Graves, who retired late last month after 32 years at the station, by becoming vice president of news, or news director.
Whitmire is stepping in to oversee the newsroom during one of the heaviest news cycles in recent memory, with a recent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump, the decision by President Joe Biden not to run for reelection and Biden’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him on the presidential ticket. In addition, the Democratic National Convention will take place in Chicago, starting Aug. 19.
Whitmire has been one of two assistant directors at the station, along with Nneka Nwosu.
“I’m most proud of the work our team does when impactful breaking news events happen,” Whitmire told the Tribune on Tuesday. “Take the past week, for example — we have had the assassination attempt of a former president, two tornado outbreaks, a political convention in Milwaukee, a global computer outage that nearly took us off the air and the president deciding not to run for reelection. Our team didn’t miss a beat, springing into action each time they were called upon to serve the audience. There have been many instances of that over the past 20-plus years I’ve been a member of the Eyewitness News team. So, I think what I’m most excited about in this new role is being our team’s biggest cheerleader and continuing a legacy (that) has been built with decades of hard work.”
With the DNC just around the corner, Whitmire noted that the recent developments in the race for president “have given Democrats new energy as the DNC approaches.”
“We are preparing a comprehensive coverage plan, both on television and our streaming platforms, so that our audience gets up-to-the-minute information about how the convention will impact the city,” he said.
In a statement, ABC 7’s president and general manager, John Idler, praised Whitmire for being “a leading force in the newsroom for more than two decades and a key contributor to our success. His impeccable news judgment and in-depth knowledge of Chicago make him ideally suited to take the helm of ABC 7 Eyewitness News.”
Whitmire began his TV career in Toledo, Ohio, as a daily assignment reporter and producer, and he is a 10-time winner of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Midwest Regional Emmy Awards across several categories.
Whitmire is married to ABC 7 reporter Jessica D’Onofrio.
Bob Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.
