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News anchors/reporters with disabilities

A

ajinut

Guest
What happens when a journalist is hit with a sudden disability which prevents them from speaking clearly? Have there been any lawsuits recorded?
 
They go *poof*

The former weather guy on the CBS Morning News Mark McEwen had a stroke, and disappeared for several years. He's back doing weekend weather in the CBS affiliate in Orlando, I think.
 
Yes, sad but true. The main weather forecaster for WMUR in New Hampshire was hit by a car while biking and sustained a serious head injury. They allowed him to come back for a while and tried to be as classy as possible about it, but eventually he was let go. There was just no other choice, as he wasn't improving much.

A sad thing, but what can you do? There's no nice way to deal with such a thing. All I can say is that anyone who gets involved with broadcasting (especially TV) has to know up front that this is a very real risk. After all it is a business that is, in many ways, based on superficiality.
 
Those cases may unfortunately be true, however, on a good note, the weekend weather anchor on channel 7 in Denver for many years, Pam Daale was confined to a wheelchair, I believe due to a horse riding accident early in her life. Unfortunately, she is now deceased due to breast cancer, however, kudos to channel 7 for hiring the disabled.
 
KPIX, CBS5 San Francisco, has Barbara Rogers. She co-anxhors the Noon Newscast. .... Oh, whoops, she is not disabled, just annoying! Wrong thread, sorry.
 
Didn't CNN have a reporter, I think his name is John Hockensmith, who was in a whhelchair and was on air for several years? ???
 
YEKIMI said:
Didn't CNN have a reporter, I think his name is John Hockensmith, who was in a whhelchair and was on air for several years? ???
Click to expand...


John Hockenberry. He was with NBC/Dateline for quite awhile, not sure he still is. Nothing about CNN on his Wikipedia profile. Hockenberry is a paraplegic.
 
PTBoardOp94 said:
They go *poof*

The former weather guy on the CBS Morning News Mark McEwen had a stroke, and disappeared for several years. He's back doing weekend weather in the CBS affiliate in Orlando, I think.
Click to expand...

Actually, Mark McEwen left The Early Show in 2002 and came to WKMG in Orlando in Fall 2005 to anchor the Morning News and boost ratings for the station, well a couple of months into his tenure at WKMG he suffered a stroke after a flight from Baltimore(?). He suffered the stroke at Orlando International Airport, in fact the stroke was so bad he tried calling his wife and she couldn't understand him. Details on the severity of his stroke were hush-hush with the station GM promising Mark would be back soon but it hasn't and may not happen because Mark is still recovering to this day, his voice is not the same.

http://www.local6.com/news/10168903/detail.html
 
PTBoardOp94 said:
They go *poof*

The former weather guy on the CBS Morning News Mark McEwen had a stroke, and disappeared for several years. He's back doing weekend weather in the CBS affiliate in Orlando, I think.
Click to expand...

He was already off of CBS national and was doing morning and noon news for WKMG in Orlando. He returned to do specails for the station in August 2007, but is not a regular, as he is spending time promoting his book on stroke survival. http://www.local6.com/news/13927175/detail.html
 
In Canada, Citytv in Toronto had David Onley, who worked for the station from 1989 to 2007, first as weatherman, later as breakfast show host, then education reporter, then anchor for Citytv's news channel, Cable Pulse 24. At three years of age, Onley was a polio victim, who was, at onset, fully paralysed -- he gets by today on an motorised wheelchair, and can move his hands, but not his arms.

In 2007 he left Citytv to become the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario.

For more, see:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Onley
 
Susan Aude was the lead anchor on WIS-TV in Columbia SC for many years. Ms. Aude was confined to a wheelchair as a result of a serious auto accident. Nonetheless, she rose through ranks quickly to become 6, 7, and 11 o'clock anchor and certainly was one of the most trusted, respected, and loved personalities imaginable. Aude retired when WIS was purchased from Cosmos broadcasting by Raycom, supposedly because she feared the health insurance cuts Raycom made.
 
1069_KIFR said:
KPIX, CBS5 San Francisco, has Barbara Rogers. She co-anxhors the Noon Newscast. .... Oh, whoops, she is not disabled, just annoying! Wrong thread, sorry.
Click to expand...
Was this supposed to be your FEEBLE attempt at humor???

Not the least bit amusing. :mad:
 
In Phoenix, KOOL-TV (now KSAZ) has anchorman Bill Close, who had 2 artificial legs
 
azumanga said:
In Canada, Citytv in Toronto had David Onley, who worked for the station from 1989 to 2007
Click to expand...

And in Windsor, CBET (CBC) has Tara Weber for their weather girl, and she is confined to a wheelchair. CBET has not emphasized this the way Citytv has emphasized David Onley's handicap.
 
Don Harrison lost a leg to cancer when he was 13.

Chris O'Donoghue, who uses a wheelchair, worked at WWOR Secaucus, NJ and WJZ Baltimore as a reporter.
 
Buddy Rutledge was the sports director/anchor at WAPI-13 (now WVTM) in Birmingham in the mid '60's. He was wheelchair-bound due to contracting polio as a youngster. In addition, he also served as the play-by-play announcer for Auburn Tigers football and basketball until his death in '68.
 
Great replies so far-

Obviously, though, wheelchair-bound anchors and reporters fare just as well as able-bodied.

BUT I am wondering about stroke victims, spinal cord injuries, etc. where the journalist's speech and ability to communicate is compromised.
respectfully, Dick Clark as an example-
 
Charles1 said:
Buddy Rutledge was the sports director/anchor at WAPI-13 (now WVTM) in Birmingham in the mid '60's. He was wheelchair-bound due to contracting polio as a youngster. In addition, he also served as the play-by-play announcer for Auburn Tigers football and basketball until his death in '68.
Click to expand...

I guess that would explain the parking lot sign in the background of a picture I saw once - "This space reserved for BUDDY RUTLEDGE" - while the other anchors didn't have reserved spaces. Not even 'weather girl' Rosemary.... ;D

I never knew about his polio!! And I withdraw all mental eye-rolling about prima-donna egos......

--Russell
 
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