President and CEO Colleen Brown arrived in 2005 and named Jim Clayton, a former executive with Fox's New York owned-and-operated station, vice president and general manager in July 2006. She sued the station for discrimination after the station replaced her with a younger Asian American woman. He married Kerry Brock, another KOMO News anchor and reporter in 1992, left the station and moved to Nashville, Tennessee. Shortly after the purchase was approved, Sinclairexecutive chairman David Smith got on a plane from the headquarters in Maryland, along with a team of about 13 of the companys most senior members. He was 54. Becky Bell, a Supply Chain Analyst for Boeing, was grocery shopping with her daughter at her local Fred Meyer on Sunday, Feb. 5. Leah joined the First Alert Weather Team as the weekend morning meteorologist. Im baffled., Suspect charged in fatal shooting in downtown St. Louis, Former Sweetie Pies TV star Tim Norman gets two life sentences in nephews death, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol slams ump C.B. One employee had colleagues at other Sinclair stations who, before the KOMO sale, had warned about these segments. Breaking news reporters Kevin Reece and Joe Furia and North Puget Sound reporter April Zepeda were let go without warning and, curiously, in the middle of the May ratings-sweep period. hursday offered a fresh start for a Perryville husband and father of four as hes finally able to hear his family fully for the first time. Former CNN anchor Aaron Brown is another well-known national TV personality whose early career included a stint in Seattle. Things were not perfect under Fisher Communications' management, to be sure. Eric Johnson is an American television weeknight news anchor for KOMO 4 in Seattle, Washington. Maurice Drummond co-anchors News 4 This Morning alongside Claire Kellett. GSBA, Comcast, and other partners are working to address disparities in access to financial resources with the Ready for Business fund. He married Kerry Brock, another KOMO News anchor and reporter in 1992, left the station and moved to Nashville, Tennessee. Pimentel also said Conners' actions would have caused problems if he had been called on to report on the Obama administration. Meanwhile, a $3.9 billion sale of Tribune Media, which owns Q13, to Sinclair is still pending. In spite of the abrupt dismissal, Furia refuses to say anything negative about his former employers, saying he still respects his good friends working there. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) will end mask requirements in hospitals beginning April 3rd. Deion Broxton is an award-winning journalist. David Kroman is formerly a reporter at Crosscut, where he covered city politics. Seattle's reigning anchorwoman Jean Enersen stepped down from the KING5 evening anchor desk in June 2014, after delivering the news to local viewers for 42 years. When they cut jobs and automate production, it frees up temporary cash so they can then over-leverage their content farms,said one former reporter. . A North St. Louis native has made history as the first Black CEO and founder of a radically inclusive pharmacy. Russell Kinsaul is a reporter for News 4 at 4:00, 5:00 and 6:00. When you hear a newscaster say a cliche on your card, click on it to mark it off. Sinclair wanted KOMO staff to fall in line with its broader pay and vacation policies, which were far less flexible and generous than what employees had grown used to under Fisher. Seattle TV anchors: Then and now Brubaker's daughter . Two Missouri State Representatives have filed two bills to try to seek answers for people who are victims of hazardous and atomic bomb waste in St. Louis and St. Charles Counties. Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eric_Johnson_(journalist)&oldid=1087284682, This page was last edited on 11 May 2022, at 14:51. It was seen as parroting the new president and disguised as a news segment. Hattie Kauffman is another famous national journalist with Seattle roots. Kathi Goertzen - Wikipedia It was a cheap way to eat up air-time. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip). The longtime, popularmeteorologistretired in 2002; he died in 2010. Longtime KOMO anchor Eric Slocum dies at 54 - seattlepi.com "We regret to announce that Larry Conners is no longer a KMOV news reporter," president and general managerMark Pimentelsaid in the statement. ". Pimentel said he informed KMOV staff of Conners' firing shortly before releasing the statement. Jim Compton was a reporter on KING-TV in the '80s and '90s, and a Seattle City Councilmember. One employee said KOMO staff started to call its competitor station, Q13, KOMO Northbecause so many of their colleagues started working there after leaving. Here's why, Human Elements: Reviving Indigenous methods of habitat restoration, How life changed at KOMO when Sinclair came to Seattle, Kirkland vigil marks one year of war in Ukraine, Pacific Science Center plans to transform its iconic pools, Oh deer: Thriving herds are overcrowding the San Juan Islands, Sign up for the Crosscut Weekly newsletter, This WA bill could make it easier and safer to change your name, WA's government transparency committee is ready to call it quits, WA lawmakers work to keep public records from the public again, At Seattle Opera, A Thousand Splendid Suns burns brightly, ArtSEA: Comedy, dance and bankruptcy, now showing on Seattle stages, Seattle's Third Avenue Project takes a new approach to old problems, Some farmers question WA state's plan to pay workers overtime, Seattle has a Green Lake-sized hole in its tree canopy, study shows, Planting the seeds for Washington's forest restoration efforts, As crypto mines aim for climate action, critics call greenwashing. He had just started a new job at KOMO, the ABC TV station in Seattle, and he was alone in his apartment when his insulin pump malfunctioned. Until his retirement in 2014, Lewis served as co-anchor for the weekday editions of KOMO 4 News at 6:00p.m. and 11:00p.m. with Mary Nam. Johnson currently anchors the 5 p.m. newscast with Molly Shen, and the 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts with Mary Nam after his colleague Dan Lewis stepped away from the anchor desk after 27 years in May 2014. He's pictured at KING's headquarters in 1991. Tuesday morning a group rallied around St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner on the steps of the Circuit Court House downtown. In 2009, former KIRO 7 news anchor Susan Hutchison, pictured in blue, ran for King County Executive and lost to Dow Constantine. She's pictured circa 1990. KMOV announced Conners' firing witha statement posted about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday on its website. Because if you actually listened to the video, you can hear car horns, the pattern of feet, I was weaving in and out of this march, and you could hear this music blasting from a speaker. "I worked there for more than eight years and they give you 15 minutes to get out of the building. But Conners has been taking hits recently at KMOV, which replaced him in late April with former sportscasterSteve Savard(alongsideSharon Reed) on the marquee 10 p.m. newscast. The Florissant Parks & Recreation hosted a glow in the dark pickleball tournament Saturday. KMOV fires anchor Larry Conners after social-media controversy. Timothy Knapp joined the Gray Television Washington News Bureau in September 2018 as Studio Manager and Photojournalist. References The Missouri Supreme Court on Wednesday set a June execution date for man convicted of killing two Missouri jailers during a botched attempt to free an inmate. Mona Lee Locke, third from right, is pictured in 2012, with husband Gary Locke, right, who stepped down as U.S. Who was competing was only speculation, but one manager at the time told a colleague, Anybody but Sinclair.. A bill is moving forward in the Missouri Senate that looks to change laws on gun sales. He was 78-years-old. Everyone was kind of dismayed when it was Sinclair,said the former senior staff member. His colleague Dan Lewis' son Tim (former weekend sports anchor for KOMO 4) formerly held the role as sports director at KREM 2 from January 2009-May 2012, the role Johnson held from 1987-1989. Others grew fed up with the station after Sinclair wanted to run a piece in response to a Seattle Times editorial trashing Sinclairs purchase. This guy gets partial credit, at best. Seattle has been the spawning ground for many famous TV news personalities. Tony Ventrella is now a "Digital Media Host" for the Seahawks and Sounders FC and speaker-for-hire, according to his website. Sinclair was not the household name back then as it has become in recent months. I think, really, for the state of journalism, we have to continue to add context, we have to have a plan, we have to have a strategy for this type of stuff. Check out the gallery above for a look at some of the local television talent that has "gone national.". But it went beyond political beliefs. We trekked to Teneriffe Falls in North Bend! Jessica Grib nearly died giving birth to her daughter, almost becoming a statistic impacting hundreds of women every year. After the demise of KSTW newscasts, Christine Chen joined KCPQ (Q13) in 1999, where she anchored the news until 2006. John Schubeck . Medicare open enrollment is here and SHIBA can help! Leslie Miller now spends time promoting the Napa Valley family wine business of her husband, Richard Frank, pictured. No active threat after barges carrying anhydrous ammonia break free in Lincoln County, Man killed in fatal shooting at Washington Park, ISP investigating, Missouri House Committee to hear bills on aiding victims of hazardous waste in St. Louis, St. Charles County, Man to be executed in June for killing 2 Missouri jailers, Contaminated: The Fentanyl Crisis in St. Louis. Our work was an excellent product.. Eric Johnson began his broadcasting career in 1984 at KTVB 7 in Boise, Idaho, serving as the station's weekend sports anchor. Eric was born to Jack and Rachell Johnson and raised in the Spokane Valley. I put these photos on top of this video.. In a statement, Sinclair called criticisms unfounded.. That they were a good olboys network and they had very little diversity.. Larry Conners said he has had a tax accountant prepare his statements for years and that he and his wife had paid taxes for 2008-2010, but the IRS disagreed with the Conners over some deductions. Its unfortunate that another story like this has surfaced. But the real fire was lit after anchors were made to read the same script Livingston had read himself in March2017. Medicare open enrollment is here and SHIBA can help! One proposal involves replacing the waterscape dinosaur sculptures and all with a meadow of native plants. Mary Mapes, pictured above in 1999, worked for KIRO before moving on to CBS's "60 Minutes." The state is looking for assistance to close that gap through a summer food service program. her start at KING before landing a reporting job with Good Morning America. The IRS declined to comment. Every Sunday morning, Crosscut's weekly email sums up the best stories of the week. Before news anchor Steve Raible joined KIRO 7, he had a six-year career as a wide receiver with the Seahawks. Enersen was the first woman anchor in the country. Suzanne Phan Leaves KOMO After 16 Years - Adweek One person was shot in a confrontation between a motorist and two pedestrians, police said. My concern, though, is this chilling effect, that this could have the intimidation tactics used by activists, that coordinated effort by my critics over the weekend to call the station to bombard the station with emails. They added more newscasts, but not reporters. Sandy Hill got her start at KIRO before becoming co-host of Good Morning America in 1977. He now serves as Supervisor of Videography. For 37 years, Larry Conners has reported with professionalism and integrity. KOMO reporter Suzanne Phan is leaving the Seattle ABC affiliate.. Last week, Phan announced that her last day at the Seattle station was today and that she's moving to San Francisco to join her . KING anchor Dennis Bounds pictured at the end of his career. The city council voted unanimously to make Dierbergs the latest tenant for the Market at Olive project. Even after the IRS notified him it was cancelling the payment plan, Conners continued to make a monthly payment. You have permission to edit this article. But it is a fact that since that April 2012 interview the IRS has been pressuring me.". A lot of people here, they worked side-by-side with him on elections and breaking stories and severe weather," Pimentel said. KOMO's news operations has come under sharp criticism since the station was purchased by Sinclair Broadcasting, the company with right-wing ownership that has suggested a white nationalist. Choe denies that allegation. He reportedly has moved back to Seattle. This Saturday, ditch the car, forget about the traffic, save money on parking, and hop aboard the special Sounders train to the Sounders game. Brown began teaching journalism around 2007. Lake Washington Windows and Doors is a local window dealer offering the exclusive Leak Armor installation. ", In the Facebook post Conners penned on May 13, he says: "I dont accept 'conspiracy theories,' but I do know that almost immediately after the interview, the IRS started hammering me. Reporter Steve Osunsami of ABC News was a reporter with KOMO-TV in the mid 1990s. When you heard the word Sinclair, if youd been in the business long enough, you knew it couldnt be good,said one longtime KOMO staff member.