Austin360 blogs > TV Blog > Archives > 2008 > September > 18 > Entry
KVUE and KXAN need anchors … we’re here to help
Want to be a local TV news anchor? Austin has a couple of big openings.
KVUE is still searching for a replacement for Christine Haas, who left during the summer for a morning anchor job in Houston. The empty seat next to Tyler Sieswerda still needs to be filled.
And KXAN is looking for a co-anchor for Robert Hadlock in the wake of Michelle Valles’ abrupt departure.
Nobody asked, but we have some thoughts on what we’d like to see (and not see) in the new anchors:
The unwritten rule in local news is that co-anchors must be male and female. We don’t think the world would come to an end with two male or two female anchors. “Good Morning America” is doing just fine with Diane Sawyer and Robin Roberts. So, hire the best partner for los lonely boys at KXAN and KVUE; don’t worry about gender.
Austin is the 49th market now, which finally places us in the Top 50. We shouldn’t have to hire super-green anchors or reporters any more. Make sure the candidates can read a teleprompter. And give them some time to learn pronunciations, people and places that make Austin special.
Reporting skills? Local anchors don’t do a lot of reporting, but they should be able to cover a story. Hadlock is probably the best reporter/anchor in town. He handles political stories, environmental stories, and he’s even trotted off on foreign assignments as well, including a series of pieces about Pope John Paul II’s visit to Cuba. His new co-anchor should have some reporting credentials.
Looking good on the air doesn’t mean you have to be a beauty queen or a stud muffin. It’s all about grooming and presence. If the anchor is confident and smart — and doesn’t have any obvious, distracting physical deformities — beauty shouldn’t matter that much.
Communication is key. Talking to a camera, no matter what the average viewer thinks, is not easy. You have to pretend the cold, dead lens staring you in the face is a living, breathing person. And you have to do that while reading the teleprompter AND listening to people yammering in your ear-piece. A good anchor makes this juggling act look effortless — like Judy Maggio and Ron Oliveira at KEYE and veteran sports anchor Dave Cody at Fox 7.
It’s about the news; it’s not about the anchor.
OK, stations. You know what we want, so go out and fill those empty chairs!
Permalink | Comments (7) | Post your comment Categories: Local news
Comments
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By Tim
October 4, 2008 5:14 PM | Link to this
Umm, Carla? What proof do you have that women are being "fired" at 40? Ms. Holloway clearly mentioned, neither Haas nor Valles was "fired." Haas accepted a position that represented a promotion, and Valles and KXAN couldn't come to terms on a new contract.
I'm pretty sure Olga Campos and Judy Maggio are north of 40...
By mike
September 22, 2008 10:39 AM | Link to this
Sorry,but you can't compare GMA to regular news programs. I don't want two females anchoring and I don't want two males anchoring, you need the balance.
By Carla
September 19, 2008 5:24 PM | Link to this
Can I add one more? Why are TV stations firing women the second they turn 40??????????????
If you're going to hire a female PLEASE make it someone who has 20+ experience. As a woman I am so disgusted with the 55 year old man next to the 31 year old beauty queen.
Please let us know you value females as real, qualified candidates. T-n-A is only important to the lower class who never watch the news and will not be purchasing a single item from your advertisers.
By John
September 19, 2008 1:31 PM | Link to this
Leslie Cook is coming back to Texas after a stint in DC....
She could slide right back in at KXAN!
By TVGAL
September 19, 2008 10:19 AM | Link to this
I agree with SamIAm! This "You know what we want" assesment is silly. Thank goodness for TVSPY.com and press releases, or our newspaper's local media coverage would be even worse.
How about finding out WHY all these women left so suddenly in the last year from KVUE and KXAN. Don't take the station's word for it, ask the anchors.
And add to your list of "don't wants": pompous attitudes, over-doing-it deliveries, and regurgitated news. While you're at it, critique a larger variety of network shows and local coverage of news events.
That's what we want.
HOLLOWAY RESPONDS:
Wow, TV Gal, you must be having a very bad day.
As we reported (and not from TV spy or a press release), Christine Haas left KVUE to take a job in a Top 10 market, Houston. Who wouldn't do that? It's called career advancement.
And Michelle Valles and KXAN came to an impasse over contract negotiations. In personnel matters, there are things said on the record and things are said off the record. As journalists, we know which is which and act accordingly. If you want unchecked, mean-spirited gossip, this TV blog is not the place to find it.
By Lisa
September 18, 2008 12:41 PM | Link to this
Valles was the reason I stopped watching KXAN - too much a giggling girl emulating the emoting of the news like Maggio. So, to add to the list - don't tell me how to feel about something via an emotional delivery. And I don't care about what you think about it, I care about the facts - facts are the news, not the person telling it.
By SamIAm
September 18, 2008 12:29 PM | Link to this
Wow...that's a very one sided assessment (and a swipe at Michelle Valles), I think. Same might be said about local media that cover TV - hmmm...seems that there area a gazillion new shows and all we continuously see posted are reality shows - which take no talent for the most part. Anchors come and go - its part of the way the market works.