ABC News president Ben Sherwood has officially announced the hire of Paula Faris as co-anchor of “World News Now” and “America This Morning.”
Faris joins ABC from WMAQ, the NBC station in Chicago, where she has been a sports anchor and reporter for the past six years. News of her hire was first reported by Time Out Chicago’s Robert Feder in October; an official announcement was delayed until Faris’ contract with WMAQ was finished.
In addition to co-anchoring the overnight newscast with Rob Nelson, Faris will contribute to “Good Morning America,” where she will join her former WMAQ colleague Ginger Zee.
Read the full announcement from Sherwood after the jump.
Please join me in welcoming Paula Faris to ABC News.
Paula will co-anchor “World News Now” and “America This Morning,” joining Rob Nelson at the anchor desk.
She will also contribute to “Good Morning America” and our other broadcasts and platforms.
An irrepressible broadcaster who can tackle any story, Paula joins us from WMAQ-Channel 5 in Chicago where she worked as a sports anchor and reporter for the past six years. She has also worked at WCPO-TV in Cincinnati and WKEF/ WRGT-TV in Dayton, Ohio.
Prior to her on-air career, Paula spent eight years working behind-the-scenes in TV production.
Her passion for sports began at a young age, spending Saturdays with her father at Michigan Stadium rooting mightily for the Wolverines.
Paula covered the Atlanta Summer Olympics in 1996 and won an Emmy at WMAQ for co-hosting a Winter Olympics special featuring Chicago-area athletes. She recently won an Emmy for WMAQ’s Chicago Auto Show coverage.
Paula was destined to be a reporter – her childhood nickname was “Paula 20 Questions.”
Over the holidays, she is driving from the midwest to relocate on the east coast with her four-year-old Caroline Grace, two-year-old JJ, and husband John Krueger.