Andrew Vrees Named WMUR Manchester GM

Hearst Television executive Andrew Vrees has been appointed president and general manager of the company’s ABC affiliate WMUR Manchester, N.H.

Vrees has been Hearst Television’s vice president, news, since 2016 after serving as news director of the company’s flagship station, WCVB Boston. He succeeds Jeff Bartlett, who will retire this summer and under whom he served for five years as WMUR’s news director.

“Andrew is the ideal executive to succeed Jeff and work with the outstanding WMUR team to continue and expand upon the station’s great legacy,” said Hearst Television President Jordan Wertlieb. “His career-long dedication to local television’s special role as a provider of news, information and community service and his inherent connection to the state will ensure that WMUR builds upon its rich history as New Hampshire’s statewide news leader.”

Since he began his corporate role with Hearst Television, he has been a part of the company’s news executive team led by Barbara Maushard, senior vice president, news, which has launched three groupwide journalism initiatives — a Washington, D.C., based National Investigative Unit, headed by former CBS News investigative reporter Mark Albert; a National Consumer Unit, headed by former NBC News consumer reporter Jeff Rossen; and Project CommUNITY,  an ongoing initiative to investigate, chronicle and study undertakings across the country focused on uniting people within their communities.

Under the Project CommUNITY banner, the Hearst stations have helped raise more than $33 million for relief for Covid-impacted families throughout Hearst Television’s communities. During this period the company also has been honored with three groupwide USC Annenberg Walter Cronkite Awards for political journalism and two Service to America Awards from the National Association of Broadcasters Leadership Foundation.

During Vrees’ time at WCVB, among numerous other honors the station earned an Edward R. Murrow Award for Overall Excellence as the nation’s most outstanding news station, and Vrees was named Broadcasting & Cable magazine’s News Director of the Year (top 25 markets) for 2012.  He served as news director of WMUR from 2004 to 2009, assistant news director at Hearst Television’s KOAT Albuquerque, N.M., from 2001 to 2004 and assistant news director at WTVG Toledo, Ohio.

He began his career in television in 1991 as a news anchor, reporter and producer at KTVF Fairbanks, Alaska, followed by moves to KSWO Lawton, Okla.-Wichita Falls, Texas, and then KTUU Anchorage, Alaska.

Among his industry activities, Vrees has been instrumental in shaping industry standards as a member of the Radio Television Digital News Association board of directors.

Vrees received bachelor’s degrees in journalism and political science from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.