KMOV (Channel 4) News Director Steve Hammel has spent the last seven years of his career trying to lead his troops to a ratings victory over KSDK (Channel 5).

But now, with the big payoff perhaps within reach, Hammel is leaving Channel 4 for a similar job in Washington, D.C.

"I was not looking to move," Hammel says. "I got a phone call out of the blue from the general manager at WJLA-TV."

Hammel will leave in early May to take over as both news director and vice president of news at WJLA, an ABC affiliate. Since he's headed inside the Beltway, it's only fitting that Hammel assess his time at Channel 4 by asking the question politicians often pose, "Are we better off now than we were four (or in this...