Suarez to be interim host of WMHT’S ‘New York Now’
Veteran journalist and news anchor was with “PBS Newshour”
Journalist Ray Suarez, a 14-year veteran of the “PBS Newshour,” will serve as the interim host of WMHT’S statewide political report “New York Now” beginning with this week’s episode.
Suarez will host “New York Now” — which for a decade has been a co-production of WMHT and the Times Union — for several weeks and will continue as a contributing correspondent. A veteran journalist and news anchor, Suarez currently co-hosts KQED’S nationally syndicated radio broadcast “Worldaffairs” and was formerly the host of “Inside Story” on Al Jazeera America as well as NPR’S “Talk of the Nation.” His work on the “Newshour” ran from 1999 to 2013.
Suarez, a Brooklyn native, is the author of three books, most recently 2013’s “Latino Americans: The 500-Year Legacy That Shaped a Nation.”
“It’s a real pleasure to sign on with an important program at an important time,” Suarez said in a news release. “And it’s a pleasure to come home to New York, the place where I was born, educated, and where I started in the news business.”
Suarez’s interim position with “New York Now” follows managing editor and host Matt Ryan’s departure for a post in the communications office of state Comptroller Tom Dinapoli.
The roots of “New York Now” reach back to its predecessors “Capitol Report,” “Inside Albany” and “New York Week in Review.” In the Capital Region, the program airs at 7:30 p.m. Friday and midnight Sunday; it airs throughout the state on most public broadcasters.
“We are committed to continuing to provide in-depth analysis of issues that impact New York state from the Capitol,” said Joseph Tovares, WMHT’S vice president and chief content and engagement officer. “We look forward to building on our legacy as a trusted news source across multiple platforms to further engage our audience.”
Times Union managing editor Casey Seiler, who co-hosted the show throughout Ryan’s tenure, will continue as the host of the program’s Reporters’ Roundtable and as a contributing correspondent. Karen Dewitt, Capitol Bureau correspondent for New York State Public Radio, will also continue to contribute to the program with in-depth reporting both on-air and online.
The change at “New York Now” comes amid other changes in the political media world: Susan Arbetter, a former “New York Now” host who spent 10 years hosting WCNY’S “Capitol Pressroom” radio program, recently announced she will depart at the end of the month to take over Spectrum News’ weekday political report “Capitol Tonight.”
Liz Benjamin, a former Times Union and Daily News reporter who hosted “Capitol Tonight” for a decade, announced her exit for a post with a consulting firm in the spring.