This reporter is leaving WSAV-TV. Soon she’ll help Beaufort strengthen public trust
The city of Beaufort has hired a Savannah television reporter as its public information officer, its third PIO in the past year-in-a-half.
Her charge, according to City Manager Scott Marshall, will be strengthening public trust and transparency.
Marshall announced the hiring of Danielle Cobb as the city’s new PIO Wednesday. Cobb is a reporter with WSAV-TV.
As the PIO, Cobb will oversee the city’s media relations, public messaging, digital communications and community outreach efforts. She will play a key role in communicating major city initiatives, emergency information, and day-to-day operations to Beaufort residents and stakeholders, the city said.
Cobb will take over the communications office at a critical juncture.
The city is embarking on a potentially $30 million reconstruction of its promenade, the city’s crown jewel. That high-profile project, which is expected to take a few years to complete, will require close communication with the city and its residents and downtown businesses that rely on the traffic and revenue it generates.
Cobb was covering a meeting about the promenade problems and possible solutions that drew a crowd to Waterfront Park Wednesday evening. The city announced it had hired her earlier in the day.
Clear and consistent communication is essential to good government, Marshall said in a news release. Cobb’s background in broadcast journalism, storytelling, and community engagement, the city added, “uniquely positions her to enhance the City’s communication strategy and strengthen transparency and public trust.”
Who is Danielle Cobb?
Cobb, who will start May 18, said her mission as PIO will be prioritizing the people, businesses and journalists in the community “through transparency and honest communication.”
“What makes this opportunity especially meaningful is that I not only work here, but I call this city home,” Cobb said in a statement. “I care deeply about this community and look forward to continuing to build strong relationships by listening with an open ear and an open mind.”
Cobb lives in Beaufort but is originally from Spartanburg. She graduated from the University of South Carolina Beaufort in 2024 with a degree in communications, according to her WSAV profile. The multimedia journalist joined the WSAV News 3 in July 2024.
Communication missteps by Beaufort
Cobb’s hiring follows communications missteps by the city over the last year.
In August, the city acknowledged it accidentally released thousands of pages of private information to an individual who submitted a public records request. An investigation into the release of that information is ongoing.
The November launch of a $9.7 million project to install new 72-inch stormwater pipe underneath Charles and Craven streets got off to a rocky start when a key intersection providing access to downtown businesses was blocked before the holiday season instead of afterward. The 11th-hour change angered businesses who criticized the city for poor communication. The city said the alternative construction schedule was necessary because of last-minute underground discoveries in construction area.
Other WSAV-TV reporter worked for Hilton Head
Cobb replaces Ashley Brandon, who held the PIO job for 14 months before leaving the city in March. Brandon replaced Kathleen Williams, who had held before retiring in late 2024. Williams joined the city in 2019.
Cobb isn’t the first WSAV-TV reporter to leave the station to join a Beaufort County municipality.
In June 2023, WSAV-TV anchor Andrew Davis took a job as the marketing and communications director for the town of Hilton Head. Davis returned to the Savannah television station in May 2024.
This story was originally published April 23, 2026 at 11:30 AM.
