Michael Ziegler, CEO of WSKG in Binghamton, N.Y., during two decades of dramatic changes, died Aug. 19. He was 85 years old.
The cause of death was not disclosed, but Ziegler had been in hospice care, according to an obituary published by the Charles F. Snyder Funeral Homes of Pennsylvania.
Ziegler once said that his career in broadcasting was fated from the day he was born because his family gathered around the radio while his mother was in labor.
“I’ve been told the first words I heard were Jack Benny’s.”
While growing up in York, Pa., Ziegler did odd jobs and scored occasional on-air appearances on local radio stations. While attending Pennsylvania State University, he worked as a cameraman on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. After graduation, he began working in public broadcasting. His career included jobs with public radio and TV stations in Charlotte, N.C., and West Virginia. He served as COO of WITF in Harrisburg, Pa., from 1970 to 1980.
Ziegler took on leadership of WSKG in 1980. He saw the station through a financially difficult period. Later he helped broker the 1989 purchase of the former Willow Point School in Vestal, N.Y., the current location of the WSKG’s studios and headquarters.
In 1992, Ziegler made an appearance on the hit PBS Kids game show, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? The episode revolved around theft of the new WSKG studios.
When tornadoes ripped through the region in 1998 and knocked Binghamton’s ABC affiliate WIVT-TV off the air, Ziegler opened WSKG’s doors to help the commercial broadcaster maintain its news reporting capacity while recovering from the damage.
Ziegler served as chairman of the New York State Public Broadcasters Association for many years. His foresight on public broadcasting’s shift to digital prepared WSKG to make that transition smoothly. During his time at WSKG, Ziegler was proud that the city of Ithaca had the highest rate of NPR listeners per capita in the United States.
“We are grateful to Mike Ziegler for his visionary leadership which helped create a strong foundation for WSKG,” said Natasha Thompson, WSKG CEO.
The family plans to hold a memorial service at a later date.
In his memory, Ziegler’s family requests donations to Willow Valley Communities Foundation for the Memory Care Center; 100 Willow Valley Lakes Drive; Willow Street, Pa.; 17584; or Hospice and Community Care; 685 Good Drive; P.O. Box 4125; Lancaster, Pa., 17604.