Sally Thorner

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Thorner in 2000 Sally Thorner 2000.jpg
Thorner in 2000

Sally Thorner is a retired television news journalist who was a reporter and an anchor for several different markets over the course of 30 years. Although she worked in both Springfield, Massachusetts, and Wichita, Kansas, Thorner is primarily known as an anchor in Baltimore, Maryland, where she was on WMAR for ten years before joining WJZ-TV in 1993. After retiring from WJZ in 2009, Thorner began a career as a regular guest blogger for the Huffington Post, and as a voice-over artist. [1]

Springfield, Massachusetts City in Massachusetts

Springfield is a city in the state of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern Mill River. As of the 2010 Census, the city's population was 153,060. As of 2017, the estimated population was 154,758, making it the third-largest city in Massachusetts, the fourth-most populous city in New England after Boston, Worcester, and Providence, and the 12th-most populous in the Northeastern United States. Metropolitan Springfield, as one of two metropolitan areas in Massachusetts, had a population of 692,942 as of 2010.

Wichita, Kansas City and county seat in Kansas, United States

Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of 2017, the estimated population of the city was 390,591. Wichita is the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area which had an estimated population of 644,610 in 2015.

A news presenter – also known as a newsreader, newscaster, anchorman or anchorwoman, news anchor or simply an anchor – is a person who presents news during a news program on the television, on the radio or on the Internet. They may also be a working journalist, assisting in the collection of news material and may, in addition, provide commentary during the program. News presenters most often work from a television studio or radio studio, but may also present the news from remote locations in the field related to a particular major news event.

Contents

Career

Thorner's lengthy career in Baltimore earned her regular praise from such publications as The Baltimore Sun and the Jewish Times. For example, in an article on her life after retiring from television, Baltimore Sun Magazine editor Jill Rosen wrote that "As an anchorwoman for 25 years, [she was] the omnipresent face of television news in Baltimore." [2]

<i>The Baltimore Sun</i> daily broadsheet newspaper in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, United States

The Baltimore Sun is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the American state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, the newspaper is owned by Tribune Publishing.

The Baltimore Jewish Times is a subscription-based weekly community publication aimed at the Jewish community of Baltimore.

After Thorner announced her retirement, the Sun's David Zurawik wrote that, "She came to represent local broadcast news at its best - serious, trustworthy and nonsensational, but also reassuring and friendly... But it is her calm and solid presence at the anchor desk that will be missed and remembered most by Baltimore viewers. Thorner also embodied some of the challenges facing women of her generation, and was open in discussing the choices she made professionally in relation to goals for her family life." [3]

David L. Zurawik is an American journalist, author, professor, and media critic. He has been the TV and media critic at The Baltimore Sun since 1989 and is an assistant professor of communications and media studies at Goucher College. Before that, Zurawik was a TV critic/columnist at the Dallas Times Herald. Zurawik is the author of The Jews of Prime Time.

In addition to her role as anchor, Thorner also played a minor role in the 1984 Goldie Hawn vehicle Protocol .

Goldie Hawn American actress, film director, and producer

Goldie Jeanne Hawn is an American actress, producer, and singer. She rose to fame on the NBC sketch comedy program Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1968–70), before going on to receive the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Cactus Flower (1969).

<i>Protocol</i> (film) 1984 comedy film that starred Goldie Hawn and Chris Sarandon. The screenplay was by Buck Henry and it was directed by Herbert Ross

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In her role as Huffington Post blogger, Thorner has discussed both her travels and more serious issues such as her battle with melanoma. [4] Thorner has also utilized her role on the Huffington Post to promote Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America (LEDA). [5]

Melanoma malignant neoplasm originating from melanocytes

Melanoma, also known as malignant melanoma, is a type of cancer that develops from the pigment-containing cells known as melanocytes. Melanomas typically occur in the skin, but may rarely occur in the mouth, intestines, or eye. In women, they most commonly occur on the legs, while in men they are most common on the back. Sometimes they develop from a mole with changes such as an increase in size, irregular edges, change in color, itchiness, or skin breakdown.

Move to WJZ

In 1992 WJZ approached Thorner to lead their new 5 p.m. broadcast. At the time, she had been working nights at WMAR, so she took the job for both a pay raise and better hours (as she had become a new mother the year before). Thorner was not, however, able to immediately begin work at WJZ because of a non-compete clause in her previous contract. So, in December 1992, WJZ agreed to pay Thorner a full salary throughout all of 1993 although she would not log one hour on-air. [6]

Non-compete clause term in contract law where a person agrees not to compete

In contract law, a non-compete clause, or covenant not to compete (CNC), is a clause under which one party agrees not to enter into or start a similar profession or trade in competition against another party. Some courts refer to these as "restrictive covenants." As a contract provision, a CNC is bound by traditional contract requirements including the consideration doctrine.

This move proved front-page fodder for the local newspapers [6] as the advance payment represented WJZ management's confidence in Thorner's ability to win ratings. In fact, in a noted departure from Baltimore's traditional schema of co-anchors, Thorner was clearly delineated as the marquee player.

On the eve of her return to broadcast news in January 1994, the Sun wrote: "Tomorrow is opening night for one of the most important productions in the history of Baltimore television -- WJZ's new 5 o'clock news with Sally Thorner. For the record, WJZ calls it "Eyewitness News at Five" and has an impressive-looking press kit that stresses its "four-member news team -- Sally Thorner as news anchor joined by John Buren, Bob Turk and Sandra Pinckney." But Thorner's the franchise. She's the free agent for whom WJZ general manager Marcellus Alexander took out the checkbook and paid $250,000 in November 1992." [6]

Personal life

Thorner was born in Great Neck, New York, on June 20, 1955. She earned a BA from Smith College. [7] In 1990, Thorner married physician Brian Rosenfeld. [8] Their son, Everett Rosenfeld, is the Asia Pacific editor for CNBC. [9]

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References

  1. ↑ "Bio". Sallythorner.com. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  2. ↑ Rosen, Jill. "Sally Thorner's Town and Country". Baltimore Sun Magazine. Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  3. ↑ Zurawik, David (9 September 2009). "TV Loses Local Face". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  4. ↑ Thorner, Sally (20 March 2010). "Saving Face: Skin Cancer". Huffington Post. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  5. ↑ Thorner, Sally (8 April 2011). "Follow the Leader". Huffington Post. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  6. 1 2 3 Zurawik, David (2 January 1994). "Sally Thorner shines again, as WJZ's 5 p.m. news anchor A Star Is Reborn". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  7. ↑ "WJZ's Sally Thorner retiring after 25 years". Z On TV. The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  8. ↑ Charles, Laura. "It was a good year to stroll down the aisle". Eyes Only. The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
  9. ↑ "CNBC Profiles: Everett Rosenfeld". CNBC. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
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