Mark Zinni and Erin Connolly have been promoted at WFSB CBS 3, Meredith's Hartford, Connecticut station.
Mark Zinni and Erin Connolly have been promoted at WFSB CBS 3, Meredith's Hartford, Connecticut station.
Zinni and Connolly will take over the 11pm newscast starting Monday. Longtime anchor Dennis House stepped down from that newscast on April 21.
"There are wonderful, talented people on every shift at Channel 3 and it's an honor to work with them all each day" Zinni said on his Facebook page. "Starting Monday, I'm excited to finally announce that I'll still be with Denise and Mark at 5:30 — but I'll be joining the incredibly kind and talented Erin Connolly and Bruce DePrest on Eyewitness News at 11! This is a station that has a long and amazing history in Connecticut and I'm honored to be part of this team — but it's about the viewers and people in the state who will always be the priority of each newscast, no matter who is sitting at the anchor desk. Thank you and I'll see you Monday at 5:30 and 11!"
Zinni joined WFSB as an anchor and reporter in 2014.
He is an Emmy and Associated Press award-winning journalist who came to WFSB from WJW FOX 8 in Cleveland, Ohio where he was an anchor and reporter for five years. Prior to his time working in Northeast Ohio, he had a brief stint at KTVX ABC 4 in Salt Lake City, Utah, and before that worked for almost seven years as an anchor and reporter at WPRI in Providence, Rhode Island.
Zinni got his start in television in 1995 as an intern at WKYC in Cleveland and later worked as an intern at NBC's TODAY Show in New York. In 1997, Mark got his first job as a producer and reporter at WICU in Erie, Pennsylvania, and then went to work as an anchor and reporter at WTOV in Steubenville, OH.
Born and raised on the east side of Cleveland, Mark graduated from Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin High School in 1994. He is a 1998 graduate of the School of Journalism & Mass Communication at St. Bonaventure University in Olean, NY.
"I am honored and humbled to announce that I have accepted a new role here at Channel 3" said Connolly on her Facebook page. "Starting Monday, I will have the privilege of co-anchoring Eyewitness News at 11 with my wonderful friends and talented colleagues, Mark Zinni and Bruce DePrest. I am so thankful to you -- our loyal viewers -- for your continued support and for making us Connecticut's #1 local news!"
Connolly joined WFSB in 2014 as a general assignment and investigative reporter. With more than a decade of experience anchoring and reporting all over the country, Erin enjoys sharing her passion for storytelling with the people of Connecticut.
She joined WFSB from Time Warner Cable News in Albany, New York where she was an anchor and reporter for four years. Her reports were seen in seven markets, including Albany, Hudson Valley, Syracuse, Binghamton, Utica, Watertown and Elmira. Erin covered some major political stories including several Presidential visits. Some of her favorite assignments included live-field anchoring the Travers Stakes horse race in Saratoga Springs, the New York State Fair in Syracuse, and the men's NCAA Final Four Basketball tournament in Atlanta, Georgia. Erin was also a four-time co-host of Albany's St. Patrick's Day Parade.
Prior to TWC News, Erin was a weekend anchor and reporter for WCTI ABC 12 in New Bern, North Carolina. She anchored and produced a one-hour newscast on the weekends and reported during the week. Before that, Erin was in the Midwest, where she worked as a weekend anchor and one-man-band reporter for KEYC CBS/FOX 12 in Mankato, Minnesota. Erin's first job in the television business was at the nationally syndicated hit television show, Inside Edition. As a story coordinator, she worked in a fast-paced newsroom booking multiple exclusives and had the opportunity to interview a number of news personalities and celebrities at red carpet events, including Walter Cronkite, Elton John, John Travolta, Jon Bon Jovi, and Billy Joel.
Erin graduated from Tufts University in Boston with a degree in Political Science and Mass Communications & Media Studies. While attending Tufts, she was the co-captain of the women's basketball team and was named to the NESCAC All-Academic Team. Erin was also the Vice President of her class, a Chi Omega sorority sister, a viewpoint columnist for the Tufts Daily, a campus tour guide, an anchor/reporter for TUTV News, and the co-host of a television dating show. She spent one summer studying abroad in Talloires, France. Erin attended Syosset High School on Long Island, where she was the captain of her soccer, basketball and lacrosse teams and was voted Best Female Athlete of her senior class.
Congrats to both!
Related: 11 Questions with Mark Zinni
