Richard Sher is a longtime newscaster in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, who spent most of his career at

WJZ-TV WJZ-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, serving as the market's CBS outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division, and maintains studios and offices on Woodberry, B ...

Early life

Richard Sher was born in 1941 to Michael and Lillian Sher at the Women's Hospital in Bolton Hill. He grew up in Northwest Baltimore and attended the St. Paul's School in Baltimore County, where he was "one of the few Jews." Sher received his

undergraduate degree An undergraduate degree (also called first degree or simply degree) is a colloquial term for an academic degree earned by a person who has completed undergraduate courses. In the United States, it is usually offered at an institution of higher ed ...

in 1963 and his

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree in

Communication Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...

s in 1965 from the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD i ...

Broadcasting career

Before arriving at WJZ, Sher was news director for WBAL-FM Radio (WBAL-FM "News 98" became

WIYY WIYY (97.9 FM, "98 Rock") is a commercial radio station in Baltimore, Maryland. It is owned by Hearst Communications and broadcasts a mainstream rock radio format. WIYY shares studios and offices with sister stations WBAL (1090 AM) and WBA ...

/ 98 ''Rock'' in 1975), where he established an all news format for the station. He has also worked in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

and

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Sher joined WJZ in 1975. From 1988 through February 1995, he co-anchored the weekend

newscast News broadcasting is the medium of broadcasting various news events and other information via television, radio, or the internet in the field of broadcast journalism. The content is usually either produced locally in a radio studio or tele ...

s, and he was then the co-anchor of Eyewitness News at Five until January 1998. He also hosted a local talk show, ''People Are Talking'', with

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954) is an American television presenter, talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show' ...

in the beginning of her career. Sher played a broadcaster in a cameo role in the 2006

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and comedie ...

movie '' Man of the Year''. Sher retired from WJZ on November 24, 2008, after 33 years there. His retirement announcement was pre-empted by his friend and former colleague Winfrey, who introduced him to her audience and informed them of Sher's impending retirement.

After WJZ

After retiring from WJZ, Sher's presence on the Baltimore airwaves endured. His Sunday morning public affairs forum ''Square Off'', which he had hosted for many years on WJZ, continued on

WMAR-TV WMAR-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by the E. W. Scripps Company. The station's studios and offices are located on York Road ( Maryland Route 45) in Towson north o ...

. In 2015, Sher began hosting a

game show A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...

at the Horseshoe Casino in Baltimore. The show was named ''People Are Winning'', as "a nod to ''People Are Talking'', the long-running morning show that Sher hosted on WJZ-TV." He volunteers weekly at Maryland's

R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center (also referred to as Shock Trauma) is a Physical trauma, trauma hospital in Baltimore, Maryland and is part of the University of Maryland Medical System. Shock Trauma was founded by R Adams Cowley, considered th ...

.Michael Olesker, "Happy Birthday, Richard Sher" ''JMore: Baltimore Jewish Living'', November 16, 201
Happy Birthday Richard Sher
/ref>

References

Sources

*[http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/health/local_hospitals/from-tv-to-shock-trauma%2C-richard-sher-takes-on-new-role-as-hospital-volunteer From TV to Shock Trauma, Richard Sher takes on new role as hospital volunteer -- ''ABC 2 NEWS'' WMAR Baltimore, Sunday Sept 18, 2011] {{DEFAULTSORT:Sher, Richard 1941 births Living people University of Maryland, College Park alumni Television anchors from Baltimore Jews from Maryland American game show hosts 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews