In case you missed it, here's the story from this weekend's News & Observer about the local TV news stations and what they're all doing to win viewers.

Nutshell: WRAL is the ratings leader overall, but WTVD rules with women. And tonight, former longtime WRAL anchor Pam Saulsby (left, with Wes Hohenstein and Penn Holderness) co-anchors her first nightly newscast on NBC-17. 

There's lots of stuff here about Nielsen ratings and market rankings, and a UNC-CH journalism school professor offers context.

Read more.

WNCN announced today that former WRAL anchor Pam Saulsby will join the NBC-17 team in September.

According to the station, Saulsby will join current anchor Penn Holderness and meteorologist Wes Hohenstein on the 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts. She will also produce reports for the newscasts and the nbc17.com website.

Saulsby was an anchor at WRAL in Raleigh for 20 years before leaving the station last October when WRAL revamped their studio and made other on-air changes. Debra Morgan took Saulsby's place on 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. newscasts, and Jackie Hyland was brought in to anchor other spots with Gerald Owens.

Since leaving WRAL, Saulsby has continued her second career as a singer and served as Artist in Residence at St. Augustine's College.

Saulsby's official NBC-17 debut is currently planned for Sept. 17, 2012.

Former WRAL-TV news anchor Pam Saulsby is joining forces with two others to form a new Raleigh public relations firm, GTB Communications.

Saulsby's partners in the new firm are Dan Holly, a former editor at the News & Observer, and Philip Little, a former director of communications for the UCLA School of Law.

Holly will be the managing partner of the new firm.

GTB Communications is targeting small businesses, nonprofits and educational and religious institutions.

"We bring different strengths and a wide variety of experience to the table," Holly said in a statement.

"What unites us is a strong desire to serve small businesses, nonprofit groups and other organizations that want to get their message out or need expert media advice but cannot necessarily afford big, expensive public relations firms."

Saulsby left WRAL in September after 20 years at the station.

Monday's noon newscast will be the final one at WRAL for Pam Saulsby.

The station announced last month that Saulsby would be leaving the station at the end of October after 20 years there. Saulsby was replaced in the 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts by Debra Morgan, and has been anchoring WRAL's noon newscast with Bill Leslie since the announcement.

Jackie Hyland, most recently from WPIX in New York, took Morgan's place in the 5:30 and 10 p.m. newscasts with Gerald Owens on Fox 50.

Saulsby's departure was announced as part of other changes at the station, including a new set and upgraded weather system.

There's no word yet on who will co-anchor the noon newscast with Leslie.

WRAL-TV is in the middle of major renovations right now, and the changes aren't limited to fresh sheetrock and high-tech touch screens.

The biggest change comes at the anchor desk. Longtime anchor Pam Saulsby is leaving WRAL after 20 years at the station. Her final evening broadcasts will be this week.

According to a WRAL press release, Debra Morgan will take Saulsby's place with David Crabtree at 5 and 6 p.m. on weeknights. Morgan has been with WRAL for 18 years.

Morgan will also continue to anchor the 11 p.m. news with Gerald Owens, who will co-anchor the 5:30 p.m. newscast with newcomer Jackie Hyland. Owens and Hyland will also anchor the 10 p.m. news on Fox 50.

Raleigh TV station WRAL's news division has had a foot in the music business since at least the 1970s, when John Tesh got his start there before finding later fame as a new-age pianist (and "Entertainment Tonight" anchor). The tradition continues with two new releases from WRAL newscasters.

First up is Bill Leslie, who was Tesh's roommate in Raleigh way back when and nowadays plays Celtic-flavored guitar when he's not reading the news on-camera. Leslie has a new instrumental album out titled "Simple Beauty," and it's picking up a fair amount of radio airplay. The album checks in at No. 1 on the latest ZoneMusicReporter chart for new-age music.

Then there's Pam Saulsby, who goes the jazz-diva route on her first album "The Full Measure of a Woman" -- which has genre standards including "Fever" and "Fly Me to the Moon," but also a jazzy reading of "California Dreamin'." You can hear Salusby sing it live Saturday at Maggiano's Little Italy at Durham's Streets at Southpoint. She also has dates scheduled at The Mint in Raleigh Nov. 13 and at The Umstead in Cary Nov. 20.

ADDENDUM (11/5/10): Well, this is embarrassing. A note from WTVD's Larry Stogner:

[John Tesh] never worked at WRAL. He was at WTVD. I know because I was at WRAL then and Bill Leslie was at WKIX radio.

On The Beat deeply regrets the error.