WCVB Boston Announces New Anchor Assignments

Hearst Television’s ABC affiliate WCVB Boston today made two anchor assignments. NewsCenter 5 anchor Erika Tarantal will move to co-anchor the 5 and 5:30 p.m. newscasts, and Jessica Brown will join WCVB to co-anchor the noon and 4 p.m. broadcasts.

Tarantal, who has been an anchor and reporter with WCVB since 2014, will now co-anchor NewsCenter 5 at 5 and 5:30 p.m. with Ben Simmoneau. She will also continue reporting her “5 for Good” news segments, the station’s ongoing effort to highlight people helping others in communities across Massachusetts. In addition, Tarantal will continue her role as a contributing reporter to WCVB’s newsmagazine Chronicle.

Brown joins WCVB to co-anchor NewsCenter 5 at noon with Antoinette Antonio as well as NewsCenter 5 at 4 p.m. with Maria Stephanos and Ed Harding. Brown will also serve as NewsCenter 5’s medical reporter.

Before coming to WCVB, Brown was a weekday morning anchor and lifestyle host at WXIX Cincinnati. Prior to joining WXIX in 2012, Brown was an anchor/reporter at KSNF and KODE Joplin, Mo. She began her news career over a decade ago at WAGA Atlanta. Brown is an active member of the National Association of Black Journalists. Originally from Ft. Lauderdale, FL, she earned her B.A. degree from Florida State University.

Tarantal will begin her new anchor assignments in the coming weeks, and Brown will join NewsCenter 5 in mid-August.