Eye opening role for Randy Price

Randy Price is back to work, and he couldn't be happier.

"I know I'll live to regret saying this, but a four month vacation was long enough!" laughs Price, speaking by phone on Monday June 8, just hours after his first morning at the anchor desk for WCVB-5's Eyeopener newscast. It was Price's first on-air appearance since February, when the veteran anchor - also considered the country's first openly gay newscaster - made an abrupt departure from competitor WHDH-7 after 12 years. Price was required to wait out the remaining months until his 'HDH contract expired before taking new work, and filled that time with rest, relaxation, and yes, an early summer vacation to The Netherlands and Belgium with Mark Steffen, his partner of more than 30 years; they married in 2007.

But Price says he could only take so much downtime around the couple's Maine home. "I like working!" he says. "I did a lot of rethinking... and there was a wide range of suggestions from friends about what I should do. But ultimately, those that involved being around the house more were a lot less appealing," he chuckles.

It's fitting that viewers of WCVB's 5:00 a.m. newscast will be waking up with Price, one of the New England market's most established figures for nearly three decades. Price's presence in local media has also helped raise visibility for the LGBT community: since he came out publicly in In Newsweekly in 1990, Price has become an active public figure in New England's LGBT community through work with Boston Pride, Gay Officers Action League, Boston Alliance of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Youth (BAGLY), and numerous other organizations. His February jettison from 'HDH - which was quickly followed by the termination of a second openly gay newscaster at the station, weekend anchor Brandon Rudat, within just one week - left many in the community grumbling about a sudden loss of gay visibility on local news.

On that front, Price's return is a zero-sum situation: the anchor seat he took on Monday was previously helmed by another gay WCVB newscaster, David Brown.

"It [the reaction] is multifaceted, but of course, I'm disappointed by the change," says Brown, who found out Price would replace him last Tuesday. Brown has co-anchored WCVB's Eyeopener since 2007, and first joined the station as a meteorologist in 1995.

"But I have always been a big fan and friend of Randy," Brown is quick to add. "On one hand, I'm very excited that he's here. On the other, I'm disappointed that it's at my expense. But I've been through many changes in the last 14 years, and clearly I'm pleased we'll still have a role for me."

In the wake of Price replacing him at the news desk, Brown's new role is that of a reporter and fill-in weather anchor for WCVB. He says that his contract with the station is up in September, and that it's still too early to talk about the state of negotiations for his future beyond. However, he's flattered to find himself in the position that Price did just months ago: an object of protectiveness from loyal fans and viewers.

"To be honest, the large number of emails that I've had [from viewers] since I found out has just been incredible," says Brown. "I've had hundreds in my inbox and I know that the station has been getting quite a few, so that's nice." Brown is even the subject of a special "Cause" page on Facebook.com: "Keep David Brown on WCVB."

"OK, we like Randy, but what will happen to David?" reads the fan-made webpage. "Let's band together to tell WCVB that we want David to continue to be a part of our morning routine!" The page has already attracted a few hundred members in just a week.

Price admits that it can feel a bit awkward to inherit a position once held by not just a professional colleague, but also a personal friend. "It can be a little [strange]," admits Price. "Because David and I have been friends for a long time." They also cross paths as regular fixtures in local LGBT advocacy: in addition to Price's aforementioned affiliations, Brown works regularly with GLBT organizations like PFLAG, BAGLY, the AIDS benefit bike ride Harbor to the Bay, he co-chaired The Men's Event for Fenway Health earlier this year, and emceed Boston's annual AIDS Walk just last weekend.

"It's kind of strange to in one sense be following in his footsteps and the role that he had," says Price. "But I've found many times in my career, and David in his career, that... we all evolve. I evolved at [Channel] 7, I did mornings, I did nights... we all move around."

Right now, though, Price says he is happy to have moved over to WCVB. Following his departure from WHDH, Price publicly discussed conflicts with that station's management over content and approach, and was critical about what he felt was increasingly sensationalized news coverage, often from outside the Boston market.

"Raccoon running amock! Coyote on the loose! Alligator snapping fingers... in Florida!" laughed Price, during a Feb. 8 WRKO interview with Howie Carr.

"When you reach the point where things aren't working well, I felt an obligation to weigh in [with an opinion]," Price elaborated to Bay Windows at the time (Priceless, Feb. 12 2009) "I reached the point where I objected too much. And in recognition of the other point of view, maybe if you're the station owner or the designated point people [you think] I reached the point of not being a team leader. I have dual roles: I'm an employee, a person who should be doing the work of the station as they see fit. I also have a role as a public person, and a person who has a relationship -- although indirect -- with viewers. So I'm very strong willed about what I want to do and what I think is right."

Price think that his new home at WCVB is a place to get it right.

"The approach to news is totally different," says Price about the two stations. "Without being overly critical or overly touting, I think if you watch the two stations you see the difference. Beyond my opinion, the credibility of [Channel] 5 as a news organization has been established over decades."

"There is a broad-based approach [at WCVB] that I find to be something so ultimately respectful of the viewer," he elaborates. "If you respect the viewer you're going to consider everything, not just the grime of the day. You can fill a news program with grime, but it's not just the quirky, or the insignificant but novel. We do have fun pieces... but I will say this, that their [WCVB] primary focus is on doing serious and responsible news that is reflective of the viewing public. ... Particularly at this time slot of the day, we aim to do a high-flying and driven flow: we want to be warm and friendly, but we also want people to be able to get their day started right. We're not doing a lot of chit chat ... we're a news program serving it up so that people can digest it."

Surprisingly, Price says he enjoys the switch from anchoring evening news to a time of day when many are barely able to rouse from bed.

"I like the early morning serenity of the newsroom," says Price. "And when you're coming down from Maine, you don't have a better commute at that time of the day, so that part is really nice," he laughs.

And yet, that is one part of the job that Brown says he definitely won't miss.
"To be honest, I'm looking forward to not waking up at 3 a.m.!" chuckles Brown. "I've been doing that since 1995. So we'll look at that as the silver lining."

"Though I need to reset my internal clock," he adds.

Maybe so, though as this newscaster swap shows, it's tough to tell what the next news hour will bring.