Hardway leaves WTAE

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

In a long post to her Facebook page, WTAE-TV reporter Ashlie Hardway said goodbye Wednesday morning.

It began, “This will be my final Facebook post to all of you.”

“After 8 years of living my dream as a reporter for WTAE, I have made the very difficult decision to leave the news business.

“I know you’ll want to know why and what I’ll be doing next, but those answers aren’t some that I really want to get into. The decision took hours of thinking about — talking about — praying about. I am staying here in Pittsburgh — just starting a new adventure.”

Her Twitter account, which has more than 11,000 followers, also had a farewell message. Ms. Hardway could not be reached for comment.

Charles Wolfertz III, station president and general manager, confirmed her resignation: “We wish her the best.”

He added that her last appearance on air was Wednesday and that a search for Ms. Hardway’s replacement — she was Westmoreland County bureau chief — would begin immediately. Ms. Hardway joined her hometown station in August 2009.

A Penn Hills native who remembers watching Michelle Wright, Sally Wiggin, Scott Baker and Mike Clark on the TV news, Ms. Hardway said in her post that the news industry was changing.

“Being a reporter can be a scary thing sometimes.

“I’ve been threatened with violence, called horrible names,