Bill Lamb Announces Retirement at KTTV-KCOP Los Angeles
Local TV veteran had long career at WDRB Louisville before heading west
Bill Lamb has announced his retirement at KTTV-KCOP Los Angeles. Lamb joined the Fox-owned duopoly in 2019 after 17 years as president and general manager of WDRB-WBKI Louisville, and VP of broadcast operations at Block Communications, overseeing eight stations. WDRB is a Fox station.
“As I have said before, ‘The only constant is change.’ In that spirit, I’ve made the decision to step away from my 50-year television career,” Lamb said in a note to staff. “I don’t know if I’m comfortable calling it ‘retirement,’ but I do plan to spend more time with my family and my golf clubs!”
Lamb said he will remain at the stations until October 3, or sooner, if a replacement is named.
Besides Los Angeles and Louisville, Lamb has worked in local TV in Flint, Nashville, Jacksonville, Birmingham, Miami and Peoria. In 2018, he was inducted into the Kentucky Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
“My time here with you has been dynamic, invigorating and productive during some very challenging times,” he said to station staff. “The pandemic presented many challenges, which we, as a station, met head on and overcame. Honestly, if you had asked me before Covid-19 if we could operate a television station remotely and never miss a newscast, I would have said it was impossible. Unthinkable. Preposterous! And I would have been wrong. Sadly, the pandemic also forced an isolation on us all that prevented many of us from getting to know each other better. I have not enjoyed that.”
Lamb saluted Fox and Jack Abernethy, Fox Television Stations CEO, whom he called “the most interesting person I’ve ever met.” ■
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Michael Malone is content director at B+C and Multichannel News. He joined B+C in 2005 and has covered network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television, including writing the "Local News Close-Up" market profiles. He also hosted the podcasts "Busted Pilot" and "Series Business." His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The L.A. Times, The Boston Globe and New York magazine.