Next Chapters

For the first time in my post-collegiate life I’m truly a free agent.

I have chosen to resign from NBC10 after 21-plus years serving the Philadelphia community with vital news and information. 

This decision to leave the Peacock after two decades was a difficult one that came amid some deep soul searching after I stepped back earlier this year to reevaluate my life and career. I didn’t come to it easily, nor do I take the ramifications of my choice lightly.

NBC10 is a special place full of talented people working together to deliver the best news and information in the Philadelphia region. You can truly “Count on It” when you tune into Channel 10, interact with its branded social media, read articles on NBC10.com and get the weather forecast on the NBC10 app before you walk out the door. (I checked the First Alert Weather before I walked outside this morning.)

I was humbled by the responsibility of carrying on a legacy that dates back to the start of TV. A place that broadcast legends like John Facenda, Gene London, Ed McMahon, Larry Kane, Edie Huggins, Bill Baldoni, Terry Ruggles, Glenn “Hurricane” Schwartz, Tracy Davidson, Pete Kane, Lu Ann Cahn, Harry Hairston, Vai Sikahema and Kristen Welker called home. (I can even call many of those people friends and colleagues.)

I’m so proud to have called Bala Cynwyd and Center City my work homes for the past two decades. I love when my kids look at the Comcast Technology Center and say “daddy’s work building.” It’s difficult to say goodbye to my little piece of ownership in such an incredible place.

Looking back at 21 years at NBC10

I went from a fresh-faced 22-year-old college grad to a middle-aged husband and father of three amazing kids.

(That means I’ve spent half my life with this phenomenal company, working with so many talented individuals.)

I started as an investigative intern. My intuition and hard work were on full display as part of the small investigative team (shout out to Lu Ann Cahn, Harry Hairston and Ed Dress) helping break the Bill Cosby sex scandal story. That led to new opportunities at NBC10 covering the Eagles, Olympics, high school football, politics, crime, music, food, lifestyle, universities, schools and religion.

I won Emmys and Murrows as I grew as a writer, producer and content specialist. I launched a major market news site, I ushered an old-school newsroom into the digital age (with “The 10,” Dan’s Daily Digital Download, the launch of the @NBCPhiladelphia Twitter page and countless digital snapshots) and I got to write something new every day.

I witnessed Live 8, Phillies and Eagles victory parades, saw the Pope mobile, met many incredible people with a story to tell, rejected Taylor Swift’s offer to take a photo with me, talked fitness with Billie Jean King and Richard Simmons, sat in a small room as G. Love played songs I requested, and even got to wear a few gold medals along the way. However, it was my commitment to tell the truth and give a voice to the often voiceless that I will treasure more than anything.

Thank you to the many mentors, bosses, colleagues and friends who I have interacted with over the past two decades at NBC10/Telemundo 62. There are too many to name them all, so let’s just name (in no particular order and with the caveat that I’m likely missing someone) those bosses who shaped who I am: David Chang, Wendy Warren, Karen Araiza, Ric Harris, Travis Hughes, Yoni Greenbaum, Frank Tomaszewski, Elizabeth Flores, Matt Dennis, Kathy Gerrow, Joel Davis, Lisa Spinosa, Dave Parker, Eric Lerner, Anzio Williams, Chris Blackman, Dennis Bianchi, Vince Lattanzio, Drew Salamone, Sabrina Vourvoulias and Camille Cwienkala.

I leave with nothing but love for NBC10/Telemundo 62. I wish everyone there success. Who knows, maybe we will work together again down the line.

That is the story to be told of the old Dan Stamm (yes, I’m referring to myself in the third person). The future is wide open with possibilities and new stories to tell.

I’m closing this chapter of my journey to spend more time with my family and find my next professional calling, and I am excited about what is in store.

What’s next? ‘No Distractions’

I think Alexander Graham Bell said it perfectly:

“When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.”

I don’t look at the closed door with regret, but rather look to a future that is wide open with possibilities and new stories to tell.

I want to thank my squad: my amazing, smart and thoughtful wife, Shelby Zitelman, our three awesome sons, my life coach, “Climb” guy Ben Kenyon, my in-laws Rick and Cindy Zitelman and so many friends and family for guiding me to this decision.

What’s happening now?I’m looking for my next opportunity – interested in full-time, fractional and temp work in communications, digital media, sports, travel and whatever else comes up. 

In the meantime, check out DanStamm.com where you can sign up for my brand-new “No Distractions” newsletter, where I will “put the focus on distraction” by sharing stories that hopefully inspire you.

With so many distractions out there vying for every second of every day of our lives, how do we focus on the things that really matter – the so-called “green light” initiatives that we either want to, or should, give our undivided attention?

Searching for that answer is what I hope to achieve through “No Distractions: a twice a week 5-minute focus to excel amid life’s challenges.”

Enough with distracting you from what you’ve got going on. Get the  “No Distractions” newsletter on the newly-launched DanStamm.com and look for new entries in the weeks and months ahead.

For now, I sign off with a full heart.

Dan Stamm