Chris Velardi Leaving WTNH to Join PR Firm

Chris Velardi has announced that his alarm is going to stop going off at 2:30am after he anchors his last newscast on Friday, March 13.

Chris has decided to leave WTNH-TV ABC 8 in New Haven, CT - and TV news altogether - to join Gaffney Bennett Public Relations which recently made him the proverbial "offer I couldn't refuse."

Chris announced the news on his blog with the following statement:

They say "change is good."

They also say "change is hard."

I want to let you know about a big change I've decided to make in my work life that will affect every aspect of my life. It's a positive change... but It's going to take some getting used to.

On Friday -- this coming Friday, March 13th -- my alarm will ring at 2:30AM -- as it has pretty much every weekday morning for the last five years -- and I will prepare to anchor Good Morning Connecticut on WTNH/NEWS8 for the last time.

That's because I've decided to leave TV news, after 20 years. It is basically the only career I have ever known. But it is also the career that has prepared me for what's next.

My career has always been about communicating and storytelling. And I will continue to do that, but in a different place, in a different way and at different times of the day. I believe this is what is best for my future and my family.Gaffney Bennett Public Relations recently made me the proverbial "offer I couldn't refuse." As a reporter, I occasionally worked on stories with associates from GBPR. It's a terrific firm of communications professionals. And it's growing. I am really looking forward to the opportunity to bring my perspective and experience to one of the state’s most well-respected agencies. I'll still be sharing important stories with the people of Connecticut, just not on TV every day. I start at Gaffney Bennett at the end of the month.

I have really enjoyed my nearly 15 years at Channel 8. I’ve had the privilege of covering the most significant stories of the last decade and a half. I've had the opportunity to meet some fascinating and inspiring people. I’m proud to have built “Report!t” to become one of the station’s most recognizable brands through the weekly “Report!t Recap” segment. Working at WTNH -- the station I grew up watching -- has been a dream come true for me. I will always value my time there and appreciate the relationships I have developed.

And while I'll miss the people of NEWS8, the people most important to me are going to see me awake a whole lot more often. “Daddy’s sleep schedule" won't dominate the Velardi household anymore and we all look at that as an important component of this decision to take my career in a new direction.

The best part about this transition is that I won't have to move to make it happen. I'm making it at home, here in Connecticut. You’ll still see me at my kids’ games and concerts, supporting the organizations that have become important parts of our lives and serving as the chairman of the Soundview Family YMCA’s board of managers. You'll still see me on social media like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram. You just won't see me on TV in the mornings, which will be a transition for all of us. But it's one that I know, in time, is the best move to make for my career and my family.

It’s time for something new.

It's time for a change.

Chris joined WTNH in 2000 as an anchor/reporter, and worked a variety of shifts until he was last promoted to anchor weekdays in 2010.

Previously, Chris was a reporter at WFMZ-TV 69 News in Allentown, PA. He also spent time at various radio stations as both a news reporter and disc jockey.

A native of Branford, CT, Chris is a 1995 graduate of Syracuse University where he studied broadcast journalism.

 

 

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