http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/towerticker/2009/07/mike-barz-out-at-wfld.html


Mike Barz out at WFLD


Mike Barz, co-anchor of Fox-owned WFLD-Ch. 32's "Good Day Chicago," is no longer with the station, a WFLD spokeswoman confirmed Wednesday.

Barz, a former WGN-Ch. 9 sportscaster who joined Channel 32 in 2007 from ABC's "Good Morning America," has been off the air since last Wednesday while WFLD investigated allegations of misconduct at an off-site July 10th party for reporter Margaret Shortridge, whose contract was not renewed, according to sources.

Those interviewed by Channel 32's human resources department said the investigation centered on Barz's interaction with a fellow employee at the party.

The station confirmed an investigation but not its substance or findings, citing privacy issues.

Barz declined comment.


Former Channel 32 morning co-anchor David Novarro, now co-anchor of the station's 10 p.m. newscast, is seen as the front-runner to replace Barz opposite Jan Jeffcoat on "Good Day Chicago." Another candidate is Patrick Elwood, who has been substituting for Barz.


Pat Mullen, WFLD's vice president and general manager, on July 10th told the Chicago Tribune that he expected Novarro to leave Channel 32 after nine years in September with the station discontinuing the 10 p.m. newscast and Novarro's contract set to expire.

Sources said that with Barz's exit, it's likely the station now will ask Novarro to stay.

The Chicago Sun-Times in September 2007 reported Barz was taken off the air briefly just two days after WFLD's rebranding of his morning newscast to "Good Day Chicago" from "Fox News in the Morning." According to the Sun-Times, the station was investigating allegations of misconduct involving a fellow employee at an off-site going-away party for a production assistant.

Barz was hired by Channel 32 six months earlier after two years as a features correspondent and fill-in weathercaster for ABC News' "Good Morning America" in New York. He previously spent seven years as morning sports anchor at Chicago Tribune parent Tribune Co.'s Channel 9.

A graduate of Indiana University, he also worked as a feature reporter and anchor for WLUK-TV in Green Bay, anchor for WHBF-TV in the Quad Cities and as a producer for Intersport Television.

_________________
favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

This guy is clearly a poon hound. How about a booze free party for once . This type of shit goes on at all company events when booze is handed out in a open bar situation. I feel for this guys poor wife. It's bad enough to deal with this asshatery in private. HR departments are the first ones to tell eveyone how to behave and then they the hand out jagoff juice by the gallon on the company dime. The expression shitting where you eat comes to mind.

Never thought of it like that...

Anyways, I hope Elwood gets the role.

Elwood is a shoe in...

_________________
-"God is great. Beer is good. And People are crazy!"

When Patrick Elwood's on "Good Day Chicago". Chilli, you really don't notice that Mike Barz isn't there...As for Barz, he's too cool for the room and a big time turn off. I didn't care for how he conducted himself. He was smug, pompous, a first class jerk and seemed to lack chemistry with his co-anchor Jan Jeffcoat, even before FOX32 expanded "Good Day Chicago" to 5 hours a few months ago.

Generally, the wife and I watch WGN for our morning news. However, when watching Jan Jeffcoat and Mike Barz as an interacting couple, I would actually put them together as the "don't touch me, don't talk to me position. Man, I miss Tamron Hall. Mike Barz can suck on this...

Yeah, blame the company-HR dept., blame people making over 250 K, blame GW Bush, etc.
2 words - personal responsibility.

Hard to get along with an apparent transvestite.
I liked Barz

I miss Tamron Hall too

I like Patrick Elwood. Good guy. But he gets as drinky as anybody. Ive seen the man lit up like a xmas tree at 330 in the afternoon. Nothing wrong with it. Just pointing it out.

Elwood is a perfect Everyman for Chicago news