Media

Since 1991, the Wrangler News has been “making a big community a little bit smaller” and giving the residents of south Tempe and west Chandler something to look forward to on Saturday mornings. This every-other-week newspaper serves all of the feel-good functions of a local paper, whether it’s giving high school sports teams the credit they deserve or profiling the spunky small-business owner down the street. But it’s also a source of engaging commentary and thoughtful coverage of local issues that can get lost in the big dailies. Every small town deserves a paper this good, and so does every big city.

 

Their wit, camaraderie and competence in delivering newscasts at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. give John Hook and Kari Lake – the longest-running news team in the Valley – the right to have last-name only billboards. “We’re kind of like a really good Hollywood marriage. We’ve been together eight years now,” Lake says. “In fact, we’re actually married and we’ve never told anyone about it,” Hook quips. Joking aside, their on-air banter and willingness to laugh at the ridiculous are breaths of fresh air in the sometimes pasty and too politically correct genre of nightly news. Congratulations, Hook and Lake.

 

KTAR has owned the AM airwaves for as long as most people can remember, broadcasting originally as KFAD as early as 1922. But last year, after KTAR’s parent company, Bonneville International Corporation, sold the rights to Power 92.3 FM, that station moved to 98.3 FM and news/talk KTAR moved in to take over the frequency. So what does that mean for Valley radio listeners? Gems like Pat McMahon and the station’s news and talk programming can be heard in high-def quality 24 hours, seven days a week on the FM dial, while 620 AM carries KTAR’s outstanding sports programs. And McMahon in high-def is like Top Gun in surround sound – in a word, fabulous.

 

A transplant from the land of cheese and bratwurst, Kevin Hunt knows a thing or two about the Green Bay Packers, having covered sports for years for WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee. But Hunt’s general passion for sports – from bullfighting to rugby – not to mention a penchant for punch lines, make him a tremendous asset to Channel 12’s weekend sports crew, where he landed in January 2006. But don’t think for a second that the transition from Midwest to Southwest was difficult for the Kansas City native. According to his Channel 12 bio, he’s been a big fan of the Southwest ever since childhood. “We drove from Kansas City to California when I was 9 years old. Arizona was my favorite part of the trip,” he writes. “Then, we hit a 120-degree day in Blythe, California, and my oldest brother tried to fry an egg on my forehead. I’ve never been the same since.” Enough said.

 

Whether it’s their golden locks that shine like morning’s first rays of light, or their white, toothy smiles that could make the Osmond siblings jealous, Ron Hoon and Alexis DelChiaro, who co-anchor Fox 10 Arizona Morning weekdays with the avuncular Rick D’Amico, have an otherworldly freshness that few people are able to attain. From grooming to fashion to carefree banter, this pair has it down, and if we gave out “Best O” sashes and crowns, we know these two would wear them impeccably.

 

When viewer favorite Sean McLaughlin returned to the Valley from New York and a big-time gig at NBC last year, he did reunite with a familiar face – just not at his old network. McLaughlin and Kent Dana are together again, but this time at KPHO, Channel 5, where Dana anchors the evening news and McLaughlin mans the meteorological equipment. But that doesn’t mean he’s just the weatherman. In fact, he’s refined his news chops covering space shuttle launches, the president’s inauguration, the Olympics and a slew of other top-of-the-broadcast worthy events. We like a guy who can handle the five Ws of reporting on top of the five-day forecast.

 

Balancing fact with opinion is certainly one of the most difficult aspects of being a news columnist, but it’s something that Laurie Roberts does particularly well. For 10 years, Roberts has covered just about everything at the Republic, from roof rats to African hair braiders. But it’s writing about the trials and tribulations of everyday Joes that Roberts enjoys most. “Issues closest to my heart would probably be those of the regular Joe trying to get out from whatever silly rules the bureaucrats and politicians throw in their path,” she says.

 

In the woolly world of local news, it’s not common for anchors to stick around for decades. But Valley native Frank Camacho has been working the news desk at KTVK Channel 3 for 23 years and counting. As the weekend anchor, Camacho has seen his fair share of sad stories, but he says it’s the people who make his job worthwhile. “I’ve been witness to some of the most inhuman acts imaginable,” he says. “But, I have also seen some of the kindest, most thoughtful gestures imaginable. Miracles happen all the time. We only have to be open to their existence.” Thanks for the reminder, Frank.

 

There are late risers and early risers, and then there’s Olivia Fierro, who gets up at 3:20 a.m. on weekdays to anchor the first hour of Channel 3’s Good Morning Arizona at 5 a.m. With enough pep and energy to power metropolitan Phoenix, Fierro seems to function best in an entirely different time zone; just don’t tell her that. “Honestly, I’m not even a morning person,” she says. “When I wake up, I’m grumpy.” Sure thing, Olivia. Whatever you say.