Feder: New NBC 5 anchor lineup teams Relerford with Sambolin weekday mornings

Michelle Relerford, who's won high marks as weekend news anchor at WMAQ-Channel 5, is moving up to join Zoraida Sambolin on “NBC 5 News Today,” the NBC-owned station's Monday through Friday morning newscast, Robert Feder writes.

Starting August 17, Relerford will anchor solo from 4 to 5 a.m. weekdays and report from the “news update desk” from 5 to 7 a.m. while Sambolin anchors. Traffic reporter Kye Martin and meteorologists Andy Avalos and Alicia Roman continue in their roles.

Alex Maragos, who now co-anchors with Sambolin, will move to weekends, taking over for Relerford at 5 and 10 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. He'll also report during the week.

The moves are part of a wide-ranging reorganization of anchor roles at NBC 5 announced to the staff today. They were prompted in part by the announced resignation of weekend morning anchor Katie Kim, who's moving back home to California, and the death of veteran Chicago broadcast journalist Dick Johnson, who anchored weekend nights.

Get the full report, and more Chicago media news, at robertfeder.com.