WDIV chief meteorologist Ben Bailey has left the Detroit NBC affiliate after seven years.
Bailey, who started working at the station in 2015, said goodbye to viewers on Friday night’s newscast and said the move “hasn’t really been a spur of the moment decision for me.”
Bailey said he’s been “talking to management for a while” about the decision, and that the close of the Olympics marked a good time for him to sign off.
Deadline Detroit reports that Bailey disagreed with the WDIV policy requiring unvaccinated staff to wear masks, but WDIV gm Marla Drutz said the move was Bailey’s decision and that it wasn’t “related per se to any kind of masking rules.”
“Ben’s been thinking about this for a while,” Drutz told Deadline Detroit. “I just think he was looking for a different opportunity. He was a wonderful guy to work with. He did a meritorious job.”
Bailey said he isn’t sure where he’s going next, but that it involves “less makeup and more whiskey.”