Murrow, Cronkite, Jennings, Couric … Zogbaum. One of our missions here at CL is star-making. And it’s high time we got the ball rolling on Ferdinand (don’t call him “Ferdie”) Zogbaum. With that winning smile and natural charisma, the camera loves him. He also brings dogged reporting chops to the game. Above all, though, it’s the name. Ferdinand Zogbaum. Say it slowly. Savor it. Oozes gravitas, doesn’t it? So why, Bay News 9, do you have Ferdinand Zogbaum locked away in the Hernando County bureau? So he can cover garbage collection controversies in Bayport? No, it’s all wrong. We deserve to see him as an anchor, to hear that stentorian voice say, “Welcome to Bay News 9; this is Ferdinand Zogbaum.” And then, if our star-making effort goes as planned: “Ferdinand Zogbaum, NBC News.”
This article appears in Sep 13-19, 2006.