Everyone in the Piedmont Triad region who owns a TV knows very well who Eric Chilton is.  Chilton – who’s also known for his excellent beach music band’s performances over the years – is, after spending most of his 58 years in the broadcast industry, opening a new chapter in his life.

 He’s just taken a job with the City of Greensboro.

City Manager Trey Davis just appointed Chilton to the brand new position: Strategic & Crisis Communications Manager, effective Wednesday, Nov. 13.

Chilton, who’s spent 36 years in the television industry said this week that it was very hard to leave his family at WFMY News 2, but added that he was very excited about the move.  He said he got some hugs on the way out.

“I’ve been doing some soul searching in the last few years he said,” on Friday, Nov. 2.

For the last two decades, Chilton has been an on-air personality at News 2, where he’s best known by many as a weatherman.  However, really he’s been doing a lot more for the station – long-form interviews, being a host on the morning show, writing copy for stories and covering straight news stories and human interest stories.

“My general manager says I’m the station’s Swiss Army knife,” Chilton said on Friday, Nov. 1.

Before going to News 2, Chilton spent seven years with WGHP Fox 8.

He’s also worked in the Tampa Bay market where he did a lot of interviews with some big names such as the group The Black-Eyed Peas.

What a lot of people didn’t know is that, while he was working in the broadcast industry, he was also consulting with corporate leaders and others as to how they could best communicate their messages to the public – since often, he said, they have to do it in 18 second sound bites for TV.

He has run workshops that are meant to critique and sharpen on-camera interview skills.

Chilton has also been working as a consultant with the City of Greensboro in recent years, and, he said, that relationship grew and now he wants to try his hand at that in his new capacity.

“In my life, I’ve checked so many boxes,” Chilton said.

As Strategic & Crisis Communications Manager, Chilton will be responsible for leading the City of Greensboro’s crisis communications – something the city needs often given what’s been going on with Greensboro government in recent years – and he will be “providing management and mitigation strategies that advance and protect the city’s interests and reputation.”

City Manager Davis said he’s really looking forward to Chilton coming on board.

“Mr. Chilton’s contributions will be an asset to the City’s executive team,” he said. “Eric’s experience and familiarity with the community will prove useful as we address sensitive high-profile matters.”

Chilton said that he sees working in television and bringing news to the viewers as a community service and he thinks this new position will allow him to continue serving the people of the Triad.

He has received two Emmy Awards, with one of those for community service, and he has also been recognized by the Associated Press for excellence in feature reporting.

Chilton said this week that it was “an honor” to join the City of Greensboro, and added that it will enable him “to continue serving the community in a different capacity,”

“I look forward to drawing from my extensive media background to assist city leadership and the City Council with citizen engagement on a variety of topics,” he said.

One reason the job was appealing to Chilton is that it will be a 9 to 5 job and he’ll be able to take vacations regularly with his family.

While he now has a 9 to 5 job at News 2 – something he called “unheard of in television news” – this new job will allow him more flexibility with his schedule.

“The news never stops,” he said.

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