Tamara Starr leaves WNYT, joins New York Lottery

May 12-After less than two years at WNYT, Tamara Starr has left the NBC affiliate for a new role with the New York Lottery - a position she describes as "Yolanda Vega's gig." While Starr did not publicly announce her departure from WNYT on social media, several recent changes pointed to the move. Her biography has been removed from the WNYT website, and her professional Facebook page was updated to include "New York Lottery" in the page name. This week, the page's linked website was also changed from WNYT's website to the New York Lottery website. Her LinkedIn was updated this month to reflect an April start date at the lottery. Starr was appearing on Channel 13 broadcasts as recently as Friday. Starr, who joined WNYT in September 2024, said she has accepted a role with the lottery similar to the one longtime broadcaster and personality Yolanda Vega held for decades. Vega became synonymous with the New York Lottery through her energetic on-air appearances and catchphrases, "You gotta be in it to win it" and "I'm Yo-LANN-da Vega," serving as the face of the lottery for more than 30 years before retiring in 2022. "I got Yolanda Vega's gig and I am absolutely loving it," Starr texted. "I appreciate everything that WNYT has done for me and has allowed for me to even be creative with segments like Tamara Tries. And even though I won't be a part of the new lifestyle show - I'll definitely be watching and rooting the team on." Starr is referring to "Capital Region Lifestyle," hosted by Chris Onorato and Caitlin Irla. The station announced earlier today that author, podcaster and former "Today" show contributor Jene Sena would be joining the morning show team. In her new position, Starr said she will be doing stories about lotto winners and how the money that is brought in from the lotto is reinvested in public schools. "I grew up watching Yolanda Vega, so it still feels surreal," Starr added. At WNYT, Starr became known to viewers of the station's morning programming through feature segments and her "Tamara Tries" series, in which she sampled local experiences, activities and trends around the Capital Region. Before joining WNYT, Starr worked at WTEN from October 2022 through March 2024. Her departure comes as WNYT prepares to launch a new lifestyle program, part of a growing trend among local television stations expanding beyond traditional news programming. Starr is the fifth local broadcast journalist to say goodbye to his or her station in 2026, and the second from NewsChannel13. Earlier this year, meteorologist Reid Kisselback departed his job at WNYT to take a job down south. We have not heard back from WNYT on a request for comment. This story is developing. Check back for updates.

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This story was originally published May 13, 2026 at 8:38 AM.