Syracuse's NewChannel 9's Ron Wood Observes 50-Years

Fifty years ago, Rod Wood started his career in broadcasting.  And Tuesday night  — much to his surprise — WSYR NewsChannel 9 in Syracuse devoted most of its 5:30pm newscast to honoring the milestone. 

According to cynradio.com, not wanting Wood to learn about the event in advance, the station did no promotions on-air, online or otherwise… and when you see how many people were on-hand in the studio, you might say organizers deserve a big hand for keeping it all under wraps.

There was no hint of anything unusual as the 5:30 half-hour of the ABC affiliate’s 90-minute early evening newscast got underway.  Wood and co-anchor Carrie Lazarus did the usual block of news stories, then a commercial break, followed by the weather forecast.  But when chief meteorologist Dave Longley wrapped up, the technical crew went from the forecast directly into a clip from Deborah Kostroun, the syndicated host of the “Bloomberg After the Bell Report” that the station airs every weeknight.

Regular viewers know that Kostroun usually appears a bit later in the newscast, and Wood always gives her a brief introduction.  But it instantly became apparent that Kostroun’s unusually-early appearance was purely intentional when, instead of offering her usual report, Kostroun congratulated Wood on his 50 years in broadcasting.

Her greeting was followed by another congratulatory message from ESPN’s Mike Tirico, who started his career at WTVH.  Tirico joked that Wood owes his longevity not to his desire to inform and educate viewers, but rather, “because you sit next to Carrie Lazarus all the time.”  Visible in an inset box on the screen, Wood opened his mouth as if to act like his secret had been discovered, and Lazarus leaned into the shot to show her appreciation for the compliment.

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Note: the date on the video should read “2013”