NBC10 and NBC Sports Philadelphia are getting new leadership
Joel Davis will be tasked with helping the stations thrive as viewers continue to cut their cable subscriptions in favor of streaming services.
If there’s one thing you can count on in the news business, it’s change. And Philadelphia is no exception.
NBCUniversal announced Joel Davis will take over as the president and general manager of the company’s three local networks in Philadelphia — NBC10, Telemundo62, and NBC Sports Philadelphia. Davis comes to Philly from Raleigh, N.C., where he was vice president and general manager of NBC affiliate WRAL and Fox affiliate WRAZ, both owned by Capitol Broadcasting Co.
Davis, an Iowa native, will start March 17. He brings a lot of experience to NBC10, home to the No. 2 nightly local news show in Philadelphia, trailing 6abc’s Action News. Davis has worked in local news 35 years, which included stops in Orlando, and San Diego, Fresno, and Bakersfield, Calif., to name a few.
“Joel is a proven local media executive whose experience, passion and strategic leadership has guided success and growth across broadcast, streaming and digital media platforms in several markets,” NBCUniversal local chairman Valari Staab said in a statement. “We are pleased he is joining our Philadelphia properties to further their impact on the communities they serve.”
At NBC Sports Philadelphia, Harris will work with Alexandra Matcham, who took over as the station’s vice president of content in October after spending 18 years working for the NFL. The two will be tasked with navigating a difficult media environment for the regional sports network, which is under pressure due to cord-cutting trends that show no signs of slowing down.
The two will also help NBC Sports Philadelphia navigate to Peacock, where sports fans will finally be able to watch Phillies, Flyers, and 76ers games without a cable subscription. The move is expected to happen sometime in 2025, though the company has not made any specific announcements after dragging its feet the last couple of years.
NBC Sports Philadelphia and NBC10 were brought under the same roof in 2018 as part of a companywide consolidation in other markets.
Davis is replacing Ric Harris, who left Philly last month after a little less than 10 years. While Harris wasn’t able to push NBC10 past 6abc during his tenure, he did oversee some notable decisions, including moving their stations back to Center City from Bala Cynwyd in 2018.
Harris has since landed in Chicago, where he was hired by Nexstar as the vice president and general manager of WGN-TV.
Jackie Bradford, the general manager of sister stations NBC4 and Telemundo 44 in Washington, D.C., has been serving as the station’s interim general manager.