The longtime Hearst Television newsroom leader who since 2021 has served as Assistant News Director at its WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh has been appointed bureau chief of the company’s Washington, D.C., news bureau.

Starting Feb. 1, 2025, Michael Solakian will take a post presently held in the Nation’s Capital by Wendy Wilk.

After 20 years as bureau chief, Wilk is exiting, as she was recently appointed by The Hearst Foundations to serve as Program Director of the United States Senate Youth Program.

Solakian will report to David Hurlburt, Hearst Television’s Director of Special projects and Group Initiatives.

“Hearst Television’s continued support for and investment in a presence in our nation’s capital underscores the importance of localism in every facet of our relationship with our communities; it helps distinguish us in our more than two dozen media markets around the country,” said Hearst Television SVP/Chief Content Officer for News Barbara Maushard. “Mike’s leadership and station experience will prove invaluable to guiding the bureau’s core mission: examining and explaining the impact of actions in Washington to the communities we serve.”

The Hearst Television Washington, D.C., bureau, was established in 1988, and is designed to offer stories from the Nation’s Capital to Hearst stations across the U.S.

Prior to joining WTAE, Solakian held news positions at Hearst’s WBAL-11 in Baltimore, where he was a producer and executive producer and, before that, at WLKY-TV, Louisville, where he was a producer. He began his television career at KOMU-TV in Columbia, Mo., while earning his journalism degree from the University of Missouri.

Among other professional development programs, he participated in the Kneeland Project for Responsible Journalism.