3 new people join WRAL, including an anchor/reporter. Here’s when they start
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- WRAL hires three journalists who will start in January.
- Megan Cloherty joins as senior reporter/anchor; Caroline Yaffa will cover government.
- Alex Littlehales joins “5 On Your Side” and investigative teams.
Three new reporters are joining WRAL’s newsroom soon, the station announced Tuesday, Dec. 9.
They all begin their roles in January, according to the news release.
“We are investing in journalists who can create meaningful content in every format our audience values,” news director Mike Friedrich said in the release.
Here’s what to know about the new hires.
New reporter/anchor at WRAL
Megan Cloherty is joining WRAL as a senior reporter and anchor. Her first day is Monday, Jan. 5.
Cloherty has more than two decades of experience in the industry. She previously worked at KOAA in Colorado Springs, Colorado, as a senior reporter and investigative reporter, according to her LinkedIn. For more than 11 years, she was at WTOP in Washington, D.C., where she held multiple roles including digital content manager, reporter and podcast host.
At WRAL, Cloherty will “take on high-impact reporting assignments, contribute to enterprise coverage initiatives, and help lead with the experience and authority of a seasoned journalist whose work consistently drives awareness and change,” the station wrote in the news release.
New state government reporter
UNC alumna Caroline Yaffa will start as WRAL’s new state government reporter Jan. 5.
Yaffa comes to WRAL from WSPA 7News in South Carolina, where she covered the statehouse, according to her LinkedIn. That experience has prepared Yaffa to be able to report on complex issues and convey the information to diverse audiences, WRAL said.
Previously, she also worked for the International Olympic Committee, where she interviewed athletes and coaches at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.
This is not the first change to WRAL’s politics team this year. In September, former capitol bureau chief Laura Leslie left the station for a new role as editor of NC Newsline.
New ‘5 On Your Side’ reporter
Enterprise reporter Alex Littlehales is the newest member of the “5 On Your Side” and WRAL Investigates teams. He begins his job at WRAL on Tuesday, Jan. 20.
For more than five years, Littlehales was a reporter and multi-skilled journalist at 13News Now, and ABC affiliate in Norfolk, Virginia. An Emmy and Edward R. Murrow-award winner, he also previously worked at WJCL in Savannah, Georgia, for more than two years.
With the “5 On Your Side” team, Littlehales will provide enterprise consumer journalism that can help hold institutions accountable and empower North Carolinians, WRAL said.
Recent changes at WRAL
Before WRAL announced the addition of these three new journalists, it adjusted its anchor lineups.
Lena Tillett, who had worked at the station for nine years, left WRAL for a new role in Philadelphia, which she begins in January. She had anchored both morning and evening newscasts during her time there, but most recently was on air in the evenings.
The station moved Michelle Mackonochie from morning to evening newscasts, where she joins Dan Haggerty and Gerald Owens on the anchor desk.
This story was originally published December 9, 2025 at 1:21 PM.
