Bob Ellis

Vice President & General Manager, WDIV - DETROIT

Bob Ellis is the Vice President and General Manager of WDIV, the NBC affiliate television station in Detroit, Michigan. He has held the position since October 2021. In 2023, he was named the #1 Top Local TV Leader by the Radio + Television Business Report.

Ellis, known for his creativity and bold ideas, has led WDIV in launching several innovative projects to, as he often says, “put more Local in Local 4.”  In 2021 WDIV introduced the station brand, Expect More, which serves as the guidepost to define the station’s commitment to serving the Detroit community.  He created the station’s streaming channel Local4+ and led the effort to develop and launch several innovate programs including a significant increase in live coverage of breaking news and weather and live daily original programming, including hiring the market’s first-ever streaming news anchor.  Ellis also led the effort to lean into the station’s history as the market leader in news coverage by bringing back its popular station musical branding campaign, Go 4 it.  WDIV held a market wide casting call to find its new voice, and crowned a champion in their annual broadcast of the Ford Fireworks show. In 2024 Go 4 it will become a station wide project to inspire viewers to get involved in their communities by telling stories about people and organizations leading positive efforts to make the Detroit area a better place to live.          

Before returning to WDIV in 2021, the station at which he began his broadcast career and held many positions including News Director, Ellis served as the Vice President and General Manager of WJXT and WCWJ, the Graham Media Group, Inc. duopoly in Jacksonville, Florida, since 2009. During Ellis’ tenure at WJXT the station widened the gap as the most-watched television station in Jacksonville. In 2013 Ellis was named General Manager of the Year for markets 25-50 by Broadcasting and Cable Magazine.   

While in Jacksonville, Ellis also helped WJXT leverage their News4JAX news brand to its digital platforms as the market’s leading digital news source. In 2014 news4jax.com earned the national Edward R. Murrow award as the best local television website in the United States. Among his several innovative projects during his tenure, he created the Bold City Showcase, a one-day high school football event featuring six local teams in three games played on one field, all broadcast live on WJXT.  In 2014 Ellis won the Station Excellence Emmy Award from the Suncoast chapter of National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. 

In 2020, he participated in 20th anniversary class of the National Association of Broadcasters Broadcast Leadership Training program. 

Very active in the Detroit community, Ellis currently serves on the Board of The Parade Company, the organization responsible for putting on Detroit’s annual Thanksgiving Parade and Fireworks shows. He is also member of the Second Avenue Greenway Steering Committee, partnering with several local businesses to bring a greenway to the westside of the City of Detroit from Circle Park near the DTE headquarters to the Detroit Riverfront.  He is active in the broadcast industry as well representing Graham Media Group on the NBC Affiliates Board of Directors and he is the co-chair of the Nielsen Local Alliance Committee helping chart the path forward for accurate measurement reflective of the changing media consumption landscape in the broadcast industry. 

He also previously served on the board of the Florida Association of Broadcasters.  He was a Trustee with the Jacksonville Chamber, served on the board of Goodwill Industries of North Florida, was a member of the advisory board of the Career Academies for the St. John’s County School District, was on the board of High School 9:12 a local organization helping to prepare students for college. He was also a board member for Take it to Heart a non-profit program in focused on educating minority women about heart disease.  He was a Trustee of the Jacksonville Chamber and a member of the Chairman’s Club for the Jacksonville Sports Council, the organization dedicated to generating economic impact and growth through sports in Jacksonville, including running the annual Gator Bowl college football game played each January.    

A Michigan native, Ellis graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Radio, Television, and Digital Communication.  He began his TV career in sports with his first job as Producer of the football and basketball coach’s shows at MSU.  Ellis is an 11-time Emmy winner and under his leadership his stations have earned two national Edward R. Murrow Awards.      

He and his wife Melanie have two children.