Silver Circle Honorees - 2010-2019 - Northern California Emmys®

Silver Circle

The Silver Circle honors media professionals who began their careers in television at least 25 years ago, either in a performing, creative, technical, or administrative role within the industry, or in a related field such as television journalism education, advertising, promotion, or public relations, with service connected to the San Francisco / Northern California Chapter.

Over the course of their 25-year career, honorees must also have made a significant contribution to the chapter.

Northern California — Silver Circle Honorees - 2010-2019

2019 Silver Circle Honoree

Julie Haener

KTVU FOX 2

The Pacific Northwest was home to Julie Haener where she graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. She launched her career in 1990 in Yakima, Washington, actually living in a tiny apartment right above the TV station. Putting in 12-hour days as a reporter, anchor, producer, editor, writer and photographer, she then moved on to Fresno station KJEO-TV as weeknight anchor and health reporter. After that came a job at KIRO in Seattle. She anchored mornings, requiring her to be at work by 3 AM every day. In 1997, Haener was hired by Bay Area station KTVU. Haener started at the station as a freelance reporter and within a couple of months was hired full time. She was promoted to weekend anchor in 1998 and in 2000 joined Dennis Richmond on the newly launched KTVU Channel Two News at 6. By 2006, she was named co-anchor of The Ten O’clock News, eventually expanding her anchoring duties to include the News at 5. During her time at KTVU, Haener has been recognized with seven Emmy® Awards, including one in 2004 for Best On-Camera News Anchor. That same year, American Women in Radio and Television named her Best TV On-Air Reporter. Haener grew up in Tacoma but said that she quickly fell in love with the Bay Area. She continues to enjoy taking candid photos whenever possible. She said that she has nearly 40,000 pictures on her computer waiting to be organized.

2019 Silver Circle Honoree

Liz Harrison

KFSN ABC 30

Liz Harrison is co-anchor of ABC30’s Action News Midday and Action News Live at 4 newscasts in Fresno. She is also an Emmy-winning reporter specializing in faith-based and community related stories. Liz began her broadcasting career at ABC30 in 1982. Over the years she has anchored just about every newscast at the station and has done everything from consumer to medical reporting. She and photo-journalist Richard Harmelink won an Emmy Award in May 2010 for excellence in reporting for a story on how our military trains for war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Through her stories, Liz enjoys giving a “voice” to those who don’t ordinarily have a “voice.” Liz has also been the intern coordinator at the station for many years. She has helped train dozens of college students as they prepared for a career in television news. Liz attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia and graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Broadcasting. Her formative years were spent in Baltimore, Maryland and Brussels, Belgium. It was living overseas that gave Liz an appreciation for people of different creeds and cultures. Liz enjoys speaking to various clubs and groups about her career in television, but also her experiences as a breast cancer survivor and the dangers of drug addiction. She’s been involved with several organizations over the years including the local domestic violence shelter, The Fresno Rescue Mission, Mighty Moms Foundation and the Art of Life Cancer Foundation. Liz is married with five grown children and two grandsons. When she doesn’t have her “nose in the news” Liz enjoys cooking, reading, and biking… the motorized and the pedal-powered kind!

2019 Silver Circle Honoree

Mike Luery

KCRA 3

For more than two decades, Mike Luery has called KCRA 3 home. From 1984 – 2000 he was KCRA’s Call 3/consumer reporter and was recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists for exposing abuses in California’s funeral industry. He was also honored for a series of investigative reports on puppy prisons. He returned to KCRA 3 in 2012, focusing on politics and coverage of the State Capitol. Prior to rejoining KCRA 3, Luery worked at CBS 13 in Sacramento, where his On the Money reports aired multiple times each week. Before that he served for three years as Capitol Bureau Chief for NBC Bay Area, KNTV 11, covering the “Governator”, Arnold Schwarzenegger. Luery began his broadcasting career in radio at KSPC-FM, the Pomona College station in Claremont, California. After graduating, he became the News Director at KZOZ-FM in San Luis Obispo and then moved back to his home state of Connecticut, anchoring at WPLR-FM in New Haven.

2019 Silver Circle Honoree

Wayne Philippo

KPIX 5

For nearly 22 years, Wayne Philippo directed daily live newscasts and sports shows at CBS station KPIX in San Francisco. Starting at the station in 1998 afterbeing hired by John Catchings, himself a 2002 Silver Circle inductee, Philippo’s first assignment was producing the only-in-San Francisco Bay to Breakers race for 4 straight years. Before KPIX, Philippo was a director at WSVN (Fox) in Miami, Florida for four years. Earlier, he had previousdirector/producer stints at WSOC (ABC), in Charlotte, North Carolina for six-years and also worked as a technical director/director for three-years at CNN Headline News in Atlanta, Georgia. Philippo is a graduate of Boston College and has a Master of Science degree from Boston University. With his institutional knowledge, he’s enthusiastically mentored next generation broadcasting professionals. He’s served as a NATAS Governor and from 2003 until 2017 and directed the annual Emmy® Awards shows. Wayne received the Governors’ Service Medallion in 2018.

2019 Silver Circle Honoree

James 'Suds' Sudweeks

KGO ABC 7

James “Suds” Sudweeks started in the mail room at KTVU 2 in 1964. Climbing the ladder to night PBX operator, shipping clerk and finally film editor. A brief stay at KCFT 42 in Concord and then in 1967 to KBHK 44 as Assistant Film Director, then traffic. Back to KTVU 2 as a News Editor. In 1975 he moved to Visalia as Film Director and On Air Promotions at KMPH 26. ‘Suds’ joined KGO in December of 1977 and remained for the next 37 years as a a News Film, Video Tape and Digital Editor, News Field Tech and Satellite Engineer. After retiring in August of 2014 he continued working for his union, CWA/NABET, both at the local and national levels until finally retiring completely in July 2018. Throughout the years, Sudweeks smoothly adapted from one generation of technology to the next, from the early days of film processing and splicing to the more recent non-linear, digital age of today.

2019 Silver Circle Honoree

Mike Sugerman

WCBS Radio / KPIX 5

Veteran reporter Mike Sugerman is often described as funny, witty and a great storyteller. Starting at KCBS radio in 1984 and transitioning to KPIX-TV ten years later, Sugerman was hailed by The San Francisco Chronicle as the Bay Area’s “Everyman Broadcaster.” Much of his reporting consists of slice-oflife features, however, Surgarman was name “Citizenof- the-Year” in 2002 by the San Francisco Department of Public Health for exposing the city’s underfunded and overcrowded emergency room system. Love of family took him to New York in 2017 to be near his kids and first grandchild. Currently a multimedia journalist at WCBS radio, he won his tenth Edward R. Murrow Award for a video about a lady who saved a hat factory from going out of business. Sugerman is a member of the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame and recipient of 17 Emmy® Awards.

2018 Silver Circle Honoree

Jessica Aguirre

KNTV NBC Bay Area

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2018 Silver Circle Honoree

Ken Bastida

KPIX 5

San Francisco native Ken Bastida was bitten by the broadcast bug during high school. This led him to earn a B.A. in Broadcast Communications from San Francisco State University, where he was inducted into the University’s Alumni Hall of Fame in 2007. During his college years, Bastida interned at KFRC Radio, followed by on-air radio jobs at KGO, KMEL, K101 and KCBS. In 1990, Bastida was awarded a Peabody award for his contributions to KCBS Radio during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. For four seasons, he hosted HGTV’s Landscape Smart, before joining KPIX in 1990. As an anchor/reporter, Bastida has been recognized with Emmy® Awards/nominations and for excellence by the Associated Press, RTNDA, and the Peninsula Press Club. His reporting assignments have included journeys to the Middle East covering the Intifada and the building of Israel’s separation border in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. In 1988, he covered Hurricane Iniki, and traveled to the Mojave Desert when it was designated a National Park Preserve. Bastida has proven to be a steady presence during major news events, anchoring live coverage on September 11, San Bruno gas explosion, Oakland Ghost Ship fire, the San Francisco Giants’ World Series parades and Super Bowl 50.

2018 Silver Circle Honoree

Dianne Fukami

Bridge Media Inc.

Prior to co-founding Bridge Media in 1991, Dianne Fukami began her career at KPIX in 1977 following her graduation with a B.A. in Journalism from U.C. Berkeley. By 1983, she was Assistant News Director at the station, largely responsible for contract negotiations, marketing and promotion strategy, budgeting and personnel decisions. During her career at KPIX in addition to thousands of newscasts, she produced election coverage, political debates, special events, local sports team celebratory parades, and wall-to-wall coverage of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. At Bridge Media, Fukami became a prolific documentarian of the Japanese American experience. Her most recent work is a co-production with the Mineta Legacy Project on the life of Norman Mineta. Fukami has been recognized with Associated Press, RTNDA and Emmy® awards. A former NATAS Governor, Fukami received the chapter’s Service Medallion in 1991 and was a founding chapter member of the regional Asian American Journalists Association. She has been named the Distinguished Woman Warrior by the Pacific Asian American Women Bay Area Coalition for Outstanding Media Service, selected by Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a Japanese American Leadership Delegation; and invited to the 2015 Worldwide Assembly of Women in Tokyo. She teaches video storytelling at Academy of Art University where her students produce a half-hour weekly TV show.

2018 Silver Circle Honoree

Edie Lambert

KCRA 3

Edie Lambert anchors the 5, 6:30 and 11 PM newscasts on KCRA 3. Prior to anchoring, Lambert covered hundreds of stories in the Sacramento region as a general assignment reporter. Highlights of her career include an interview with President Barack Obama, part of which aired on NBC Nightly News; and covering the Scott Peterson trial for KCRA and MSNBC’s The Abrams Report. Lambert started in television in 1990 working in Santa Barbara at KEYT where she stayed five years. While in college studying political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara, Lambert landed her first paid job in journalism as an anchor and reporter for KTMS-FM, a news/talk format radio station. Growing up, Lambert lived around the world, traveling with her marine biologist parents. She lived in Japan, Bermuda, Hawaii, Sweden, and France. Her background set her up as a community activist involved in a variety of social causes including breast cancer research and awareness, lung health, and domestic violence. Her work has been recognized with an Emmy® Award, numerous nominations and Associated Press citations. Lambert serves on the board of directors of the Sacramento Press Club, co-chairing the scholarship program and mentoring the next generation of journalists. Her favorite volunteer project is reading to local children to promote literacy.

2018 Silver Circle Honoree

Stacy Owen

President & General Manager, KNTV NBC Bay Area and KSTS Telemundo 48

Stacy Owen is President & General manager, NBC Bay Area and Telemundo 48.

Stacy Owen is the President and General Manager of NBC Bay Area / KNTV and Telemundo 48 Area de la Bahia / KSTS, the NBC and Telemundo-owned stations serving the Bay Area. Owen brings more than 25 years of experience in broadcast news to her role, including extensive experience in newsroom management and multimedia marketing.

Owen became President and General Manager of NBC Bay Area and Telemundo 48 in September 2017 after serving as the Assistant News Director for NBC 4 Southern California / KNBC for five years. In her current role, Owen leads NBCUniversal’s local television stations that serve English and Spanish-speaking viewers in the San Francisco Bay Area. She also oversees the stations’ operations including news, sales, marketing and promotions, technology, digital and community affairs.

She joined NBCUniversal after serving as WLWT News 5’s News Director for three years. During that time, her efforts elevated the station’s newscasts to the #1 or #2 position in all time periods.

Prior to her success in Cincinnati, Owen also revamped ABC affiliate, KXTV News10 in Sacramento into a digital-first Multimedia Information Center. During her time in the role, the station won all demos in the 11 PM time period for the first time in 50 years and won an Emmy for Best Newscast in Northern California. Owen also worked as KRON San Francisco’s News Director for three years where she managed the transition from NBC affiliate to an independent television station.

Owen graduated with Honors from University of California, Berkeley and currently serves on the board of the Silicon Valley Leadership Council.

2022 Gold Circle Honoree

2018 Silver Circle Honoree

Kopi Sotiropulos

KMPH FOX 26

Born in Greece and raised in Fresno, Kopi Sotiropulos eventually traveled to San Francisco in the late ‘60s to major in broadcasting at San Francisco State University. After graduation, Sotiropulos found employment in 1971 at KMPH 26 in Visalia, first as a commercial copywriter and later as a producer, photographer, editor and talent in commercials and promos. He also hosted Dialing for Dollars. After six years, Sotiropulos moved to Hollywood, spending 10 years as an actor working on many popular programs; including, The Incredible Hulk, Three’s Company, Mickey Spillane, Perfect Strangers, Highway to Heaven, General Hospital, Days of Our Lives, and Beverly Hills Cop 2. Moving back with his family to Fresno in 1987, Sotiropulos worked with Company 3 Productions directing and producing commercials. He returned to KMPH in 1990 to be the weatherman for Fox 26 Ten O’clock News. In 2003, KMPH created Great Day, the weekday five-hour morning show Sotiropulos co-hosts with Kim Stephens. He also shoots the daily segments: 10-Day Forecast, Great Day Faces and 7th Inning Stretch for Great Day. To everyone in the San Joaquin Valley, especially the children, Sotiropulos is “Mr. Fresno.” He gives school presentations; is MC for numerous community events; recognized with several “Best of Fresno” awards, the Muscular Dystrophy Society’s Dinner of Champions; and this past June with the Governors’ Citation from NATAS.

2017 Silver Circle Honoree

Rick Blangiardi

President/General Manager, Hawaii News Now, KGMB/KHNL

Rick Blangiardi has led a life of uncompromising service to Hawaii, his colleagues and family. He is currently the General Manager of Hawaii News Now, KGMB (CBS) and KHNL (NBC). Prior to his career in broadcasting in 1977, Blangiardi spent seven years as a college football coach, five of those at the University of Hawaii, where he received his M.A. in 1973. In 1977, he began working as an account executive, local sales manager and general sales manager at KGMB. By 1984, he became VP/General Manager of KHNL; then moving to senior TV management positions in Seattle until 1993 when he relocated to San Francisco. There he served as VP/GM of KPIX, Group President of River City Broadcasting, and President of Telemundo station group, helping lead the sale of Telemundo in 2001 to NBC for $2.7 billion. By 2002, Blangiardi returned to Hawaii, first to become Senior VP/GM of the KHONKGMB duopoly, then KHON (2005-2006), KGMB (2006-2009), and finally in 2009 adding Hawaii News Now. Blangiardi has helped lead the station’s relentless advocacy work on the plight of Hawaii’s Homeless, and has been nationally recognized by the Joyful Heart Foundation towards the battle to end domestic violence and sexual abuse. His volunteer leadership roles include Past President for the Aloha Council, Boy Scouts of America; Chair of the Board, Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii; and Past President of Na Koa, the University of Hawaii Football Booster Club. He was named the University of Hawaii’s “Distinguished Alumni” in 2014, and “Hawaii’s Distinguished Citizen of the Year for 2015” from the Aloha Council-Boy Scouts of America.

2017 Silver Circle Honoree

Jim Gaughran

Producer/Documentarian, KNTV NBC Bay Area

Jim Gaughran started in the KRON mailroom in 1981. Over the next six years, he went from delivering mail to ripping script to writing news copy to producing the Daybreak morning newscast. In 1988, he accepted a writing job with CBS News in New York. During the Gulf War he produced more than 200 live network news updates and then went on to produce the CBS Morning News with Charles Osgood. In the 1990’s, Gaughran returned to KRON to produce Nightbeat at 11. He was instrumental in getting the newscas to #1 and the Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism named Nightbeat one of the top newscasts in the country. In 2001, he moved to KPIX and lead that 11:00 newscast to #1 as well. By 2005, Jim Gaughran had produced more than 3,500 newscasts, written more than 20,000 stories and 40,000 teases and promos. In 2006 he became Executive Producer at NBC Bay Area, won the AP Mark Twain Award for Outstanding Newscast and, again, helped move the 11:00 newscast into first place.In 2011, Gaughran left to become a caregiver for his mother, who has Alzheimer’s and dementia. Since then, working from home, he has collected two Emmys® and six Emmy® nominations for his work on the NBC Bay Area documentary series, Bay Area Revelations. Jim Gaughran graduated from Stanford University with a degree in English Literature in 1978. During his career, he mentored scores of young journalists and delivered hundreds of lectures and public presentations on the joys of journalism.

2017 Silver Circle Honoree

Mark Jones

Video Journalist, Multimedia Video Productions

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2017 Silver Circle Honoree

Cristina Mendonsa

Former Anchor, KXTV ABC 10

A strong-willed journalist, Cristina Mendonsa was born in Oakland, butspent most of her youth in the central valley and Carmichael. She attended University of Colorado at Denver before graduating from Sacramento State University with a degree in Government/Journalism. She was honored by CSUS with the Distinguished Alumni award in 2007. Mendonsa completed her graduate studies at Gonzaga University in 2015 and published a thesis on the changing work habits of broadcast journalists in the top 20 markets. Having worked in newspaper and radio, Cristina made the transition to television with a job as a writer for KRBK-TV in Sacramento. She also worked for KRCR-TV in Redding and KOVR CBS 13 in Sacramento before being hired at KUSA 9 in Denver. She joined KXTV in 1996. Mendonsa co-anchored the evening news with Dale Schornack until she left the station in June of this year. Her reporting has taken her from behind the news desk to areas with high levels of political unrest such as the Gaza Strip where she delivered the news in real time along with covering the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, 2009 Jaycee Dugard discovery, and 2010 investigation of the Emerald Triangle. She has tackled terrorism both in the United States and abroad, and touched on economics, most notably the growth of California-grown businesses in other countries like the 2000 trade mission of China and California. Mendonsa’s stories have been recognized with Emmy® awards, two Edward R. Morrow Awards; five Best of Gannett, the 2010 American Women in Radio/Television Award, The National Alliance on Mental Illness national media award, and Hispanic Salute from Bureau of Land Management. She serves on a board for international entrepreneurship through the Centers for International Trade Development, is part of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and has worked as a curriculum consultant for Los Rios Community College District.

2017 Silver Circle Honoree

Len Ramirez

Reporter, KPIX 5

San Jose native, Len Ramirez, has been a news reporter for KPIX 5 News covering the Santa Clara County/South Bay Region since 1989. His interest in journalism started while at James Lick High School when he became sports editor of The Observer, the school newspaper. Prior to his arrival at KPIX 5, he was a general assignment reporter for KOMO 4 in Seattle, KMST 46 in Monterey and KSBW 8 in Salinas. Throughout his career, Ramirez has covered several major national and international stories including the Mexico City earthquake, the Los Angeles riots, the O.J. Simpson murder trial, and the Scott Peterson case. He received an Emmy® award in 2003 for Best Daytime Newscast; along with several nominations for investigative journalism, breaking news and technical achievement. Ramirez has been the recipient of three Best News Story awards from RTNDA, and was honored with the Ruben Salazar Journalism Award from the California Chicano News Media Association. An advocate for education, Ramirez often volunteers his time mentoring students and encouraging them to realize their potential. He is a frequent guest speaker at San Jose’s Latino Role Model Conference, was selected as one of ten most influential Latino journalists by San Jose Magazine and MACSA in 2007 and was selected as a “2011 Top Community Dad” by Building Peaceful Families, the Santa Clara Office of Education and the San Francisco 49ers. Ramirez received the John Swett award in 2012 for excellence in education reporting by the California Teachers association and was inducted into the East Side Union High School District Thomas P. Ryan Hall of Fame in 2012. Ramirez and his family were awarded the La Familia award in 2013 by the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley for their multi-generational work in public service. He is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and the California Chicano News Media Association. Ramirez graduated from San Jose State University in 1983 with a degree in journalism and political science. He lives in San Jose with his wife Julie and their children, Lenny, 20, Amanda, 18 and Lucas, 15.

2017 Silver Circle Honoree

Keith Sanders

Media Producer, San Jose State University

Keith Sanders spent his early years in Fullerton, CA, moving to Saratoga in 1968. He became interested in movie making as a teenager and created 8mm animated cartoons and shorts. In college his interest turned to the media. He was accepted into San José State University’s Radio, Television & Film major, and graduated in 1980. Sanders soon found employment at KGSC (later re-named KICU), running camera for The 7:30 News. By 1984, Sanders was promoted to director of The News at Noon, while also editing promos and directing commercials. In 1995, he became Executive Producer of Silicon Valley Careers, while producing and editing three documentaries including the Emmy® nominated, DNA, The Book of Life. By the end of 2003, with KICU downsizing, Sanders used this opportunity to freelance for Networth TV, NBC 11 and the Computer History Museum. By 2005, he returned to San José State as a Media Producer, where he has directed live events such as Honors Convocation and Commencement; produced/edited several mediated courses including the Emmy® nominated Justice Studies 132; as well as the Career Center’s Internship Journey, that won the Chevron NACE Award for Outstanding Achievement. In 2014, Sanders graduated with honors from CSU Fullerton with an M.S. in Instructional Design & Technology. A recent past Chapter President of NATAS, Sanders also served as Secretary, two separate Vice President positions (San Francisco and San Jose), and Managing Producer of four regional Emmy® Awards shows. He currently serves as Education Chair. Sanders received the Governors’ Service Medallion in 2002 and numerous writing/editing honors from the San Francisco Peninsula Press Club for Off Camera.

2016 Silver Circle Honoree

Randy Davis

Photographer/Editor, KGO ABC 7, San Francisco

Randy Davis, a news photographer/journalist, grew up in the news business since his father, Steve Davis, was a reporter and anchor in San Francisco for many years. After attending California State University, Chico and the Ron Bailey School of Broadcasting, Davis became a freelance film/video photographer in 1979, working at KGO and KTVU. After a brief stint at KICU, he was hired full time at KGO in 1982 where he is still employed. Throughout these years, Davis has worked as a photographer, editor, ENG and satellite truck operator. He is responsible for the day-to-day news gathering, live satellite feeds and editing multiple stories. He has covered a plane crash off the coast of Nova Scotia, Hurricane Katrina, the Loma Prieta Earthquake, Oakland Hills Fire, National Conventions, Olympics, Super Bowls, Oklahoma City Bombing, 911; traveling on assignment to Beijing, Shanghai, Sydney, Mexico and beyond. His work has been recognized with several Emmy® Awards, and he was part of the team receiving a Peabody award for the Quake of ’89. Davis provided video services for Every 15 Minutes, an anti-drunk driving program for teens for the Acalanes School District, Walnut Creek Police and the CHP. In addition to mentoring many young reporters and photographers, Davis has taught a lighting seminar at UC Berkeley, produced graduation videos for schools, and coached multiple little league and soccer teams in Walnut Creek.

2016 Silver Circle Honoree

Robert Handa

Reporter, KTVU 2 / KNTV, NBC Bay Area, San Jose

Named the “2015 Reporter of the Year” by the Associated Press, Robert Handa, who was previously an award-winning reporter at KTVU’s San Jose Bureau, returned to KNTV (now NBC Bay Area) in 2014 where he had started his career more than three decades ago. He is also the host of Asian Pacific America with Robert Handa, a weekly talk show. A South Bay native, Handa attended DeAnza College, winning a journalism contest for an internship at KNTV, which lead to his employment there. Prior to KTVU, Handa worked as a reporter/fill-in anchor at KPIX, was a reporter/documentary producer for KQED and The MacNeil Lehrer News Hour. Handa’s memorable reports include flying with the Blue Angels, an ocean rescue with the Air National Guard, the 49ers’ Super Bowl victory, and interviewing Jimmy Carter, Dalai Lama, Hillary Clinton, Henry Kissinger, Mikhail Gorbachav, Buzz Aldrin, Joe Montana, Willie Mays and Bill Walsh. His work has been awarded with several Emmy® statuettes and recognition from RTNDA, UPI, Associated Press, California School Boards Association, Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) as well as the National Association of Black Journalists. In addition, Handa was given the “Community Star” award from Asian Americans for Community Involvement and the first-ever “Media Excellence” award from the South Bay Islamic Association. He served as Vice President for the AAJA Bay Area chapter, was media chair for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation Walkathon, served on the Silicon Valley Volunteer Center, and is an active member of Kimochi, Self Help for the Elderly, Yu Ai Kai Japanese American Community Senior Service, San Jose’s Office on Aging, and Family Bridges.

2016 Silver Circle Honoree

Bill Martin

Chief Meteorologist, KTVU Fox 2, Oakland

As a fifth generation Northern Californian, Bill Martin’s great uncle was the sheriff of Vacaville in the late 1800’s. Martin grew up in Paradise (Butte Co), graduating from the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in Physical Geography (emphasis in Climatology). During those years, he spent many hours surfing the California coast from Oregon to Mexico, becoming passionate about forecasting waves and weather. This enthusiasm led him back to college where he spent three years postgraduate at San Francisco State studying Atmospheric Science. After San Francisco State, Martin completed an internship at KRON 4 and then took a job as a Chief Meteorologist at KFTY 50 in Santa Rosa in 1990. Moving on to KPIX 5, he was their morning show meteorologist for two years, leaving in 1995 to KTVU. At that time, KTVU did not have a weather department, so Martin was given the opportunity of creating and building KTVU’s weather brand, working weekends until he became the Chief Meteorologist. In 2014, after over 25 years forecasting weather in the Bay Area, Martin became one of six meteorologists in the country chosen to go to the White House to interview President Obama on climate change. The American Meteorological Society has awarded him the CBM (Certified Broadcast Meteorologist) which is the highest level of certification available and only given to a handful of meteorologists on the West Coast. He was also recognized with an Emmy® statuette in 2015 for his work as a meteorologist. Martin continues to be fascinated with California history and the stories of the people who live here.

2016 Silver Circle Honoree

Lyanne Melendez

Reporter, KGO ABC 7, San Francisco

Lyanne Melendez joined KGO in 1994 as a general assignment reporter. She covers the AIDS and education beat in the Bay Area, is guest host of ABC7’s Beyond the Headlines, and fill-in news anchor. She began her broadcasting career in 1984 as a production specialist at WTMJ in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She also worked in San Juan, Puerto Rico; as well as CNN-Spanish in New York where she was a senior correspondent and substitute anchor before relocating to KGO. In 1999, Melendez received an Emmy® and RTNDA award for Nicholas’ Gift of Life, the story of a Bay Area boy whose organs were donated to seven Italian recipients. In 1992, she received the Latina Media Person of the Year Award from New York University and her local reporting has been recognized by the California Teachers Association. Melendez’s charitable contributions include working with the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, Scholar Match, 826 Valencia (a writing center), the Mission Economic Development Agency, Galeria de la Raza/Studio 24; and Melendez’s own organization, “From Closet to Care,” which supports unaccompanied minors who come to the Bay Area from Central America. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Alabama and a Master’s degree in Mass Communications from the University of Wisconsin. Melendez has traveled to Somalia, Iraq, Central and South America, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait on special assignments.

2025 Gold Circle Honoree

2016 Silver Circle Honoree

Steve Swatt

KCRA 3 / Comcast / Time Warner

Steve Swatt is an award-winning political broadcast journalist who launched his TV career at Sacramento NBC affiliate KCRA in 1969 after reporting stints at the San Francisco Examiner and United Press International in Los Angeles. Fifty-five years later, he continues to provide political analysis for several media outlets in the Sacramento market.

During his TV reporting career at KCRA, Swatt covered public policy and numerous presidents and governors. With an MA Degree in Journalism from UC Berkeley, he has taught and mentored graduate journalism students at Sacramento State University.

For years, Swatt served as KCRA As a State Capitol and political correspondent, he’s reported on ballot propositions, issues at the state legislature as well as state and national elections. He remains actively involved with the California Conservation Corps Foundation and Friends of

California Archives boards, and has served on the Alliance for Better Campaigns board and Community Learning Advisory Board.

Swatt is author of numerous books including Game Changers: Twelve Elections That Transformed California, a political history of California. He has received an Emmy Award for his work and awards from National Health Journalism, State Bar Association, and SPJ, Association of American Political Consultants and Sacramento Public Relations Society, amongst others.

2016 Silver Circle Honoree

Lori Waldon

News Director, KCRA3/KQCA58, Sacramento

Lori Waldon, the news director at KCRA/KQCA, in Sacramento, was promoted by Hearst Television in 2012 to lead a nationally recognized news operation with an outstanding reputation for strong investigative, enterprise and political reporting. Under Waldon’s leadership, KCRA has been honored with Emmy® and Edward R. Murrow Awards for Overall News Excellence, Breaking News and Best Newscast. Before joining KCRA/KQCA, Waldon was the news director at WISN 12 News in Milwaukee; where, under her leadership, the station received recognition with a national Edward R. Murrow Award for Best Newscast- Large Market, several regional Murrow awards, along with a Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Television Political Journalism, 28 first place Associated Press awards; and several awards from the Milwaukee Press Club and Wisconsin Broadcasters Association. During her time in Milwaukee, Lori served for two years as the chairperson of the ABC News Directors Advisory Board. She also received recognition in Black Enterprise Magazine’s “People on the Move,” and guested on the Dr. Phil show, discussing diversity in newsroom leadership. Waldon joined WISN from the Sacramento duopoly KOVR13/KMAX31, where she served as assistant news director. She previously spent 13 years in news management roles at KPIX5. Prior to KPIX, Waldon worked as a news reporter at stations in Charlotte, N.C.; Mobile, Ala. and Peoria, Ill. She graduated from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science, receiving a Master’s degree in Journalism from Northwestern University. Waldon is visiting faculty at The Poynter Institute for Journalism Studies, an RTNDA Leadership Coach, and an active member of the National Association of Black Journalists.

2015 Silver Circle Honoree

Dan Ashley

KGO 7 ABC 7

Dan Ashley joined KGO ABC7 News in 1995, where he co-anchored the 5 p.m. newscast and was a reporter for the 11 p.m. news. A year later he moved into his current job co-anchoring ABC7 News weekdays. A graduate of the University of North Carolina, Ashley began his career at WTVD in Durham, NC, in 1985, followed by WCBD in Charleston, SC. Ashley’s work has been recognized by the Associated Press, SPJ, RTNDA and NATAS. During his news tenure in Charleston, Ashley received the prestigious DuPont Columbia and the Edward R. Murrow Awards. His reports have included visiting Auschwitz with Bay Area holocaust survivors, Pope John Paul II’s visit to Mexico, Columbine shootings in Colorado and live reports from New Hampshire and South Carolina state primaries. Ashley is very involved in the Bay Area community. Every year, he works through the “Dan Ashley Friends of Camp Concord Golf Tournament” to raise money to send underprivileged youngsters to summer camp at Lake Tahoe. He is involved with the Bay Area Red Cross, The Commonwealth Club of California, RTNDA, Bay Area Black Journalists Association, California Symphony, Contra Costa County Crisis Center, and Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA). Ashley has been seen at various festivals and events in the Bay Area singing classic and original rock-n-roll with his band PUSH.

2015 Silver Circle Honoree

Tom DuHain

KCRA 3

Tom DuHain is a journalistic force in the Sacramento market, having recently retired from NBC affiliate KCRA 3 after 46 years reporting and anchoring for the station. He joined KCRA in 1968, appearing as a regular member of the 11pm news. As a weather forecaster in the 1970s, he presented the first pollen and air pollution reports in the Sacramento market. DuHain moved to news anchoring and reporting in 1979, covering the Rancho Seco Nuclear Power plant. By 1984, he had received the “Gold Medallion” from the National Council for Christians and Jews; and the Adenauer Fellowship for foreign reporting in Germany, which resulted in his 10-part series on divided Germany. In 1989 until his retirement in 2015, he became a field reporter, specializing in the coverage of utilities, weather impacts, railroads, earthquakes and California history and religion. In 2015, he was honored for his distinguished career by the California Legislature. DuHain served two terms as trustee for the Los Rios Community College, the youngest elected college-board member in state history. In 1986, he was ordained deacon with the Chaldean Catholic Church. He is a Communications/Media Advisor with the Solar Cookers International and involved with Big Brother/Big Sisters, Easter Seals Telethon and the U.C. Davis Cancer Center.

2015 Silver Circle Honoree

Sandy Lee

KPIX 5

Sandra Lee began her television career in KGO 7’s promotions department in the late ‘70s. Within several years, she moved into news as a writer/show producer. She eventually became executive producer of KGO’s consumer unit, setting up phone hot lines and helping viewers with consumer problems. One of the reporters she mentored was Michael Finney. In the late ‘90s, Lee joined KRON to strengthen their consumer unit, which went on to receive numerous recognitions; including, Emmy® awards for investigative and consumer help stories. KPIX hired Lee in 2005, as Managing Editor for news. She moved on to Executive Producer for Special Projects, responsible for the consumer, investigative, and medical units as well as other special news stories. Lee is known as a hardworking journalist, who allows her staff to receive the accolades she deserves.

2015 Silver Circle Honoree

Doug McConnell

KPIX 5, KRON 5, KNTV NBC Bay Area

Doug McConnell, television journalist, has focused on environmental issues, with programs on the air since 1983. He has created, produced and hosted many series, special programs and news projects for local, national and international distribution. His broadcast awards have included multiple Emmy® awards, an Iris and a Gabriel. McConnell is a Co-Founder and Managing Partner of ConvergenceMedia Productions in Sausalito. One of the company’s principal products is OpenRoad with Doug McConnell, Exploring the West, created for PBS, currently airing on NBC Bay Area, with an online travel component. From 1993-2009, McConnell was the Host and Senior Editor of the Bay Area Backroads series on KRON. His other series included: Mac and Mutley (KPIX and Discovery Channel), Pacific Currents (KPIX) and Secrets of the Gold Rush (PBS). During his Backroads days, McConnell co-authored two best-selling travel publications for Chronicle Books. He received a M.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University in 1968 and a B.A. in Government from Pomona College. Beyond his television work, he has managed programs for the President’s Commission on Coal, the Governor of Alaska, the University of Alaska, The Institute of Ecology and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

2015 Silver Circle Honoree

George Warren

KXTV News 10

Multiple Emmy® award-winning reporter and multi-media journalist, George Warren joined News10 in Sacramento in 1981. His work for News10 has taken him around the world, from New Zealand to Eastern Europe. Among other events, Warren covered the U.S. invasion of Panama and the destruction of the Berlin Wall. He was the first California journalist in Montana following the arrest of Unabomber Ted Kaczynski. However, Warren’s most memorable assignments were closer to home. He won an Associated Press award for his live coverage of a deadly hostage crisis at “The Good Guys” store in Sacramento, and an Emmy® award for a feature series on the future of consumer electronics. Warren came to News 10 from KTVL in Medford, Oregon, where he was the evening anchor. His broadcasting career began while he was still in college, working as a vacation relief reporter at KHSL-TV in Chico, California. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Broadcasting from California State University, Chico and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. A licensed pilot, Warren was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, but prefers the foggy winters and hot summers of the Central Valley, especially boating on the Sacramento Delta.

2015 Silver Circle Honoree

Cynthia Zeiden

Zeiden Media

Born and raised in Chicago, Cynthia Zeiden’s entire career has focused on non-commercial and educational media through her work in public television. After graduating with a Master’s degree in Broadcast Management from the University of Tennessee, Zeiden worked in Knoxville before moving back to Chicago in 1992 to become Director of Broadcast Operations at WYCC. While at the station, she received multiple Emmy® nominations and taught a film class through the Center for Open Learning at Harold Washington College. In 1995, Zeiden moved to San Francisco to assume the role of Program Manager at KCSM where she introduced their first live pledge drives and produced national PBS programs before leaving the station in 1999 to form Zeiden Media, her public television distribution company. During this time, Zeiden joined NATAS, first as a Governor; then Chapter President, Activities/Programs Chair, and National Trustee. In 2011, she was appointed National Program Committee Chair, focusing on programs about social media and new technologies via live events and webcasts to other NATAS Chapters. For her many contributions to NATAS, she has received the Chapter’s Service Medallion and the Board of Governors’ Citation in 2014. Currently Zeiden is a lecturer at California State University, Sacramento and continues her non-profit work on the boards of The Sino-Judaic Institute and The Eviction Defense Collaborative.

2014 Silver Circle Honoree

Diane Dwyer

KTVU Channel 2 / KNTV NBC Bay Area

Diane Dwyer grew up in San Francisco and the Peninsula with six brothers and sisters, and she credits the Irish gift of storytelling for her success in journalism. She is a two-time Emmy® award winner and has received awards from the New York Film Festival, AP, Society of Professional Journalists and others as well. Diane started her career in 1988 as an anchor/reporter at KXLF in Butte, Montana where she survived the second coldest winter on record there. A year later, she moved to Chico, CA and worked at KHSL until she re-located to KTVU in 1990. While at KTVU, Dwyer’s reports included the Oakland Hills Firestorm, Bill Clinton’s inauguration, exclusive interviews with death row inmates and the search for Polly Klaas. She launched the Morning Show on KTVU with Ross McGowan in the mid-1990s and then became the solo anchor on the weekend in 2000. In 2002, she found her way to San Jose and became the solo anchor for the weekend news for NBC Bay Area. She traveled to Beijing and Torino (Italy) providing Olympic coverage and to DC for Barack Obama’s inauguration. Dwyer is also a faculty member at the Berkeley-Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley (her alma mater) – teaching there for the past six years. She is on the board of directors for the International House at UC Berkeley and Curry Senior Center in the Tenderloin of San Francisco. She serves as emcee, auctioneer and advisor for more than two-dozen non-profits.

2014 Silver Circle Honoree

George Lang

KGO 7, The Big Picture

Award-winning cinematographer/director George Lang is an entertainment industry veteran with over 30 years of broadcast television, corporate event, video, advertising, and public relations experience. In addition to working for every major television network as a cinematographer/director, Lang has worked in advertising and public relations for both Ketchum and Foote, and Cone & Belding. While working for ABC News in 1980, Lang received an Emmy® award for his coverage of the Winter Olympics at Lake Placid; receiving a second award in 1989 for the PBS’ documentary Paradise Lost on Bikini Atoll. In 1994, Lang traveled to Rwanda to cover the civil war for ABC, earning him a Peabody Award, and his third Emmy® statue. Known for his expertise in cutting-edge technology, Lang serves as an HD instructor for the Santa Fe High Definition Workshops. In 1997, Lang launched his own video and film production company which he aptly named, “The Big Picture.” As president, he continues to serve as the director of photography for broadcast television and commercial shoots, and as the director/producer of corporate videos and events. An active member of the NATAS Board of Governors, for the last four years Lang has sponsored two $3,000 NATAS scholarships in the memory of KGO colleagues, Jerry Jensen and Steve Davis.

2014 Silver Circle Honoree

Steve Shlisky

KTVU Channel 2 / Laney College

Steve Shlisky grew up the Bay Area cities of Napa, Cupertino and Saratoga. At the age of twelve he shot and edited his first feature, a crazy sci-fi yarn about a mad scientist ho turns himself into a spider. After graduating from San Jose State University with a degree in Film,he briefly did production worked in Southern California, Shlisky returned to the Bay Area to accept a job at KNTV in their mailroom and film departments. For nearly 40 years he worked fulltime in the local programming department as a producer/editor at KTVU. He retired from that position in 2019. Presently he lectures and co-chairs in Laney College’s Media Communications Department. He has produced and edited programs including the last 23 years of The Chinese New Year’s Parade, all 8 years of Legends of the Bay, My 20th Century, Our Town and The Great American Toy Test. A 14-time Emmy® award recipient, Shlisky has received six RTNDA awards, AP’s Mark Twain Award, seven Tellys, seven Joey Awards, plus numerous other honors for producing, editing and writing. Shlisky has also produced and/or editied videos for Maddie’s Fund, Hopalong Animal Rescue, InterPeace Global, the Stockton Symphony, and Opera Foundation. A former chair NATAS’ Education Committee, former National Trustee, and the most recent Chapter past president. He is now the chair of the Chapter’s Program & Activities Committee, Shlisky has a master’s degree from San Francisco’s State University’s BECA Department.

2014 Silver Circle Honoree

Tom Sinkovitz

KRON 4 / KNTV NBC Bay Area

Tom Sinkovitz has been a professional broadcaster for more than four decades. His career began in 1969 in the American Armed Forces Saigon newsroom featured in the Robin Williams’ movie, Good Morning Vietnam. Since then, he has worked as a reporter and anchor at television stations in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (his hometown), Cincinnati, Baltimore and Atlanta before moving to San Francisco in 1990 to work at KRON 4 and NBC 11. Throughout his career, Sinkovitz has covered Three Mile Island, Hurricanes Agnes and Hugo, the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion, the Oakland Hills Firestorm, the Los Angeles Riots, Superbowl 16, the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, numerous elections, and the San Bruno pipeline explosion. Among his numerous recognitions are three Emmy® Awards, a Peninsula Press Club honor for his Return to Vietnam series, and a New York Film Festival award for news writing. In addition to mentoring, Sinkovitz also works with the Cupertino Educational Endowment Foundation, Veterans Memorial Project Advisory Committee, Make-a-Wish Foundation and Tony LaRussa’s Animal Rescue Foundation, as well as the San Francisco church community focusing on maintaining schools.

2014 Silver Circle Honoree

Kim Stephens

KMPH 26

Three-time Emmy® nominee, Kim Stephens spends her days co-hosting Great Day, the popular five-hour morning show on KMPH Fox 26 in Fresno. After receiving a B.A. from California State University in Chico, Stephens’ career began in 1988 at KERO in Bakersfield, moving to WBIR and WVLT in Knoxville, Tennessee before re-locating to KNTV as part of their technology reporting team. By the fall of early 2003, she had taken on an anchor position at KMPH Fox 26 and the opportunity to help launch a new morning program. That show became Great Day where Stephens continues to maintain an instant connected with all of her viewers. She also anchors the station’s weekday Midday newscast and co-hosts the annual St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital telethon. Stephens finds time to be an ambassador to the community by volunteering as mentor and motivational speaker, dealing with topics of workplace protocol, healthy living, positive personal and professional growth and volunteerism. Her community involvement includes working with Muscular Dystrophy, Sunnyside Taekwondo Parent Club, Reading for the Blind and Dyslexia, YMCA, MAAD, MS Society, United Way, Ronald McDonald House and the Salvation Army. A two-term member of the NATAS Board of Governors, Stephens was recently elected Regional Vice President for Fresno.

2022 Gold Circle Honoree

2013 Silver Circle Honoree

Spencer Christian

KGO ABC 7

Spencer Christian joined the ABC 7 News team in January 1999 and is the weather forecaster for ABC 7 News at 6 and 9. He also co-hosted The View from the Bay. Christian moved to ABC 7 after nearly 13 years with Good Morning America, where he did national weather reports and specialized human interest stories. Prior to his years in New York, Christian was weathercaster in Baltimore, and host of the talk show, Spencer’s World. He began his television career in 1971 in Richmond, Virginia, as a news reporter, covering state and local politics. While in Richmond, he won the Better Life Award for his reports exposing abuses in Virginia’s nursing homes; and in Baltimore, an Emmy® Award for a series on declining language skills among America’s youth. A native of Charles City Virginia, Christian is also an Army veteran with a B.A. from Hampton University. He devotes a good deal of his time to the March of Dimes, Special Olympics, the American Cancer Society, Big Brothers, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts of America, the United Negro College Fund, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and others. In addition, he has served as the ABC Network’s spokesperson for children’s literacy, and authored the “Spencer Christian’s World of Wonders” children books. An avid sports fan, he is also a wine enthusiast and private collector.

2013 Silver Circle Honoree

Don Ford

KPIX 5, KRON 4

Don Ford’s television career began in 1978 in Corpus Christi, Texas. After a short stint there, he moved to KOVR, where in the early ‘80s, he was the first photographer at KOVR to cover a live shot of the Manteca Flood. He moved over to KXTV for a short while, but was quickly hired at KRON where he developed a reputation for being organized, traveling light and ready to “hit the road” on a moment’s notice. KRON sent Ford all over the world from Saudi Arabia/Kuwait border to Central America. In 2001, Ford was hired as the News Operations Manager for KPIX where he instituted new technology procedures including modernizing the entire ENG fleet; negotiating a new helicopter contract and self-tracking system; redesigning the satellite truck; and was instrumental in introducing the first non-linear editing at the station. After five years, Ford returned to working in the field. Ford has been recognized by the Bay Area Press Photographers Association, and has won numerous Emmy® Awards. He joined the Bay Area Press Photographers Association in the early ‘80s, eventually becoming Vice President. As VP, he grew the video side of BAPPA from a small local group into a true Northern California organization involving hundreds of television photojournalists. A former Eagle Scout, Ford is currently Scout Master of Troop 14 in Albany.

2013 Silver Circle Honoree

Roberta Gonzales

KPIX 5

Roberta Gonzales is Weekend Weather Anchor for CBS 5, with additional reporting responsibilities during the week. Previously she reported the weather on the weekdays for the station, as well as for KCBS-AM. A native of California, Gonzales returned to the Bay Area after six years of weather reporting in Chicago. Beginning her career at KPRI-FM and XETV Channel 6 in San Diego, Gonzales worked her way up from a television gardener/messenger to film editor, then writer and eventually reporter and weathercaster at KGTV. She then forecasted at KSBY in San Luis Obispo and KFMB in San Diego before being hired at KNTV in San Jose. While in San Jose, the San Jose Mercury News and the Women’s Fund named her “Woman of the Year” in the field of Communications. Gonzales has been voted “Volunteer of the Year” for the American Cancer Society, American Lung Association and the National Humane Society. She has also served on the boards of the March of Dimes, American Diabetes Association, and the Girl Scouts. A multiple Emmy® Award recipient, she has been professionally recognized by Associated Press, American Women and RTNDA.

2013 Silver Circle Honoree

Lori Silva

KHON 2

Lori Silva has worked in numerous news positions in Hawaii for the past 30 years, including assignment desk, producer and executive producer. Beginning her professional career in January, 1983 at KHON, in Honolulu, Silva worked on the assignment desk; then moved on to other news assignments before becoming the station’s executive producer for news. She stayed at KHON until 1990 when she moved to KITV in Hawaii, for the next 12 years. During that time, her jobs included producer, executive producer and eventually news director. In 2002, Silva returned to KHON, where she was promoted Executive Producer in 2006 and eventually News Director. Her work has been recognized with Emmy® nominations for Outstanding News Excellence, and numerous Edward R. Murrow regional awards. Through her volunteer work with the Society of Professional Journalists, Silva has helped employ journalism interns from the University of Hawaii. She has also been responsible for helping launch careers of countless news talent in the Hawaii market. Silva has been active with the Hawaii Shield Law Coalition, which supports a 2008 shield law that expired on June 30th which allows journalists to claim reporter’s privileges in keeping their sources secret in most civil cases.

2013 Silver Circle Honoree

Jim Swanson

KRON 4

Jim Swanson graduated from San Francisco State in 1977 with a broadcasting degree and began his professional career at KRON 4 producing religious shows for the Archdiocesan Communications Center. His first documentary, A First Class Miracle won an Emmy® Award. In 1983, he began producing documentaries, children’s shows and live sporting events for KPIX. These included Bay to Breakers, and a 49er post game show called, The Fifth Quarter. In 1996, Swanson returned to KRON to head up their local programming department and has been responsible for Bay Area Backroads, BayCafé, Henry’s Garden; along with live events like Bay to Breakers, Carnaval, Pride Parade, and New Years Live!. Swanson00 has won 15 Emmy® Awards, in categories ranging from sports to history to technical achievement. His proudest accomplishment has been as executive producer for 20 hour-long specials chronicling the history of San Francisco and the Bay Area. Over the past 30 years, Swanson has participated on numerous NATAS panels, spoken at a job seminar hosted by the American Women in Radio and Television, and was a guest speaker at a NATAS event on documentary production.

2013 Silver Circle Honoree

Kevin Scott Wing

KTVU 2, KGO ABC 7, KNTV 11, ABC News

Kevin Wing, a Bay Area native, is a versatile journalist who has been a reporter, anchor, assignment editor, assignment manager, news writer, news producer, local field producer, network field producer, special projects producer and executive producer. He has worked at numerous Northern California stations throughout his career; including: KTVU, KGO, KNTV, KRON, KICU, KFTY and KIEM. Currently, he is a freelance field producer for ABC’s Los Angeles and New York Bureaus. In addition to two Emmy® Awards, Wing has received honors for his work as an assignment editor and news reporter from the RTNDA, Associated Press, Telly Awards, Communicator Awards, Joey Awards and the San Francisco Bay Area Publicity Club. He has also served as spokesman for the VTA/BART extension to Silicon Valley. He has been active in the Bay Area Chapter of the Asian American Journalists Association as a board member as well as Chapter President and Vice President. A member of the NATAS Board of Governors, Wing has been Secretary, is currently San Francisco Vice President, and recipient of the Governors’ Service Medallion for Distinguished Service. Known, since 2007, for his Gold and Silver Circle profiles for Off Camera, Wing took over as Editor of the newsletter in 2013.

2012 Silver Circle Honoree

George Cabral

KHON 2

For the residents of Hawaii, George Cabral serves as a key component in the communication of important news information. As a past photographer for the Honolulu Advertiser and Viet Nam veteran, Cabral has worked as a news cameraman for KHON 2 News for the past 37 years. He has been responsible for covering emergency and spontaneous breaking news around Oahu for live shot segments. In addition, he has covered every Presidential visit to Hawaii since John Kennedy, having traveled to nearly every island in the Southern Pacific to bring back visuals for investigative and feature stories and other international news events. Starting at the age of eight, George Cabral’s father, a TV cameraman, put a camera in his son’s hand and told him to start filming. Cabral Jr. developed an immediate interest in camera work. Although he has never submitted any of his work for any awards, Cabral has been a trainer and mentor at KHON and is responsible for accolades given to reporters for stories he has shot. He also manages the Cabral Archives, the most comprehensive library of television news footage in Hawaii. Though his career revolves primarily around camera work, Cabral still loves photography. In his spare time he shoots pictures recreationally and even volunteers to photograph family events.

2012 Silver Circle Honoree

Cathy Cavey

KGO ABC 7

Cathy Cavey has been a news photographer and editor for 33 years, starting at KCRA in Sacramento in 1979 where she covered the refugee crisis in Somalia, the first landing of the Space Shuttle, and the MGM Grand fire in Las Vegas. In 1982 she moved to KGO’s Sacramento Bureau in 1982 and to the station’s San Francisco studios in 1985. Since then Cavey has shot and edited all types of stories: general assignment, features, special projects, politics, entertainment, sports, weather, and medical. Locally, some of KGO’s longest-lasting coverage has been of Camp Sunburst for children with AIDS, and Camp Okizu for children with cancer and their families. Cavey has traveled the world to cover breaking news such as: the death of Princess Diana, earthquakes in Costa Rica and Taiwan, school shootings at Columbine and Virginia Tech; the visit of the Pope to Cuba; profiles of patients in Italy who received donated organs; a special about the origins of El Niño in Peru and Mexico; an Oakland veterans group rebuilding facilities destroyed by the war in Vietnam; Central Valley migrant farm workers in their village in Michoacán, Mexico; and Bay Area tech businesses in China and Hong Kong. Cavey has received five Emmy® Awards; the San Francisco Bay Area Press Photographers Association photographer of the year award in 1996 and numerous SFBAPPA awards for individual stories.

2012 Silver Circle Honoree

Joe Fonzi

KTVU Channel 2

Joe Fonzi is KTVU FOX 2’s weekend sports anchor. He also hosts 49ersTotal Access, appears on 49er Playbook, KTVU’s 49ers pre-game programs, files reports from the locker room for The Point After post-game show, in addition to his sports reporting during the week. The lifetime Northern California resident has a B.A. degree from California State University, Chico. He worked at KHSL (Chico), KXTV (Sacramento), KSBW (Salinas-Monterey), and then KPIX (San Francisco) from 1982 to1994 as weekend sportscaster and feature reporter. Fonzi has called the play-by-play for the Oakland A’s, San Francisco Giants, San Francisco 49ers pre-season games, and Cal football games. For eight years, he hosted the Cal Highlight Show. He has been honored by the San Francisco Press Club, has received several UPI awards, two NorCal RTNDA awards, and two Emmy® Awards.

2012 Silver Circle Honoree

Cheryl Hurd

KNTV 11 NBC Bay Area

Cheryl Hurd is an NBC Bay Area news reporter covering the East Bay and appearing in the 11pm newscast. She has been with the station for 14 years. Born and raised in Vallejo, Hurd attended and graduated from California State East Bay. After jobs first at KTVU as a production assistant, desk assistant, and news writer, she went on to freelance reporting assignments at KICU, KPIX and KGO. Her big break came when Hurd was hired full time at WKBD TV 50 in Detroit. She stayed at WKBD for four years before moving back to a reporting position at KPIX for six years. In 1998 she helped launch the WB20 newscast as anchor for WB20 News at 10. An accomplished anchor/reporter, she has been honored by the Bay Area Black Journalist Association and has received two Emmy® nominations for breaking news. Hurd was the first to report about the BALCO steroid scandal that rocked the sports world in 2003 and the first TV reporter to interview former NBA All-Star Latrell Sprewell in 1997 after he choked his coach, P.J. Carlesimo. She is a founding member of Friends of Faith, a non-profit organization that raises money for women diagnosed with breast cancer in the East Bay.

2012 Silver Circle Honoree

Faith Sidlow

KSEE 24

A broadcaster since 1982, Faith Sidlow is currently the News Anchor/Reporter for KSEE 24 in Fresno. She began her television career in 1984 as a research intern for CBS Television News, based in London. Formerly employed at KPBS in San Diego and KNX News Radio, Sidlow moved to Fresno in 1985 where she has worked as a consumer reporter, weather forecaster, producer and assignment editor. She has been recognized with numerous APTRA awards, Edward R. Murrow recognition for News Series, Best of the West, two Emmy® nominations, two Mark Twain awards, and a Silver Medallion from the California Bar Association. Sidlow is a past NATAS Governor and Chair of the Education Committee. A dedicated community leader, her engaging and investigative reports have brought awareness to KSEE’s viewers. Sidlow has served on “Leadership Fresno,” hosted Easter Seals Telethons and taken part in Shakespeare readings. Since 2009, she has taught courses for the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism at Fresno State, giving students first-hand knowledge of television, media law and news production. Sidlow received a B.A. from San Diego State University in 1985 and an M.A. from Fresno State in 2008.

2012 Silver Circle Honoree

Javier Valencia

KRON 4, Media Consultant

Javier Valencia received his B.A. in communications and political science from Stanford University in 1979. He immediately went to work at KRON 4, where he was Community Relations Manager until 2009. Valencia now works as an independent producer and travels extensively. He is the recipient of a National Emmy® Award for Community Service; a Peabody; a Sigma Delta Chi Award from the Society of Professional Journalists; an APTRA Mark Twain Award; and two regional Emmy® statuettes for his work on Beating the Odds/Students Rising Above. He was awarded the Chapter’s Governors’ Service Medallion in 2003. In 1998, Valencia and news anchor Wendy Tokuda established the Beating the Odds College Scholarship Fund, providing financial and emotional support to students who have overcome exceptional hardships. He is also a founding member of the San Francisco AIDS Emergency Fund and Christmas in April-SF (now Rebuilding Together). Valencia has served on numerous community boards including: the Volunteer Center of San Francisco; New Conservatory Theatre Center; San Francisco AIDS Foundation; and San Francisco Education Fund. He is a past President and Awards Chair for the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of NATAS, and a former National Trustee.

2011 Silver Circle Honoree

Janice S. Gin

KGO 7, KTVU Channel 2

Janice S. Gin has been a broadcast journalist for more than 30 years. For the past 11 years she’s been at KTVU Channel 2 as the Associate News Director. But this isn’t her first stint there. In 1986, Gin joined KTVU as the weekend producer of The Ten O’Clock News, and then later as the Senior Producer of 2 at Noon. Gin started her career at KTXL-TV 40 in Sacramento in 1980 and four years later moved to KGO TV as producer; later to return as Executive Producer. Her management career has also taken her to WFMY in Greensboro, NC as Executive Producer, Atlanta as Executive Producer of the 1996 Olympic Games for Gannett Broadcasting, and KPNX in Phoenix as Managing Editor and Executive Producer of Special Projects. Honored with Emmy®, Murrow and Peabody Awards, Gin has also been recognized for her contribution to the broadcast journalism profession. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Radio and Television Digital News organization (formerly RTNDA), is recent past President of NorCal RTNDA and is a member of the Asian American Journalists Association.

2011 Silver Circle Honoree

Richard Hart

KPIX 5, KRON 4, Tech TV

Richard Hart is the only person to win both an Emmy® award for comedy and a DuPont Columbia Journalism award for investigative reporting. His broadcast career began in 1972 at WDIV in Detroit Michigan. Best remembered as co-host of Evening Magazine at CBS 5, Hart also created The Next Step for KRON 4 and the Discovery Channel. That program became the highest rated science and technology show in prime time, winning Hart a Cable Ace award for best show host. Hart was also a founding member of CNET-TV, creating shows that aired on CNBC, USA Network, Sci-Fi and 40 other broadcast stations in syndication. Currently, his company, New Material, syndicates The Next Step to selected ABC stations. Hart has a master’s degree in physics, is an instrument rated pilot, holds a 2nd degree black belt in taekwondo and is an advanced scuba diver and fencer. He has also been a volunteer MC for “The Mind Duel” annual contest for Wonderfest, which pits scientists and high school students in a battle of wits. Hart also is an instructor/consultant in the School of Multimedia Communications Department at the Academy of Art University.

2011 Silver Circle Honoree

Sherry Hu

KPIX CBS 5

Thirty-three years at KPIX CBS 5! From the News Director’s secretary, to the Assignment Desk, to Reporter, Anchor, and Multi-Media-Journalist – Sherry Hu has worked with the best. Throughout her career, Sherry has contributed an extraordinary body of work from insightful daily coverage of Bay Area communities to special reports from Hong Kong and Guatemala. Her work has earned recognition with an Emmy® award, as well as first-place awards from APTRA, RTNDA, the Peninsula Press Club and the California Bar Association. Few things, though, move Sherry more than children, particularly their education. For a number of years, she worked part-time at KPIX CBS 5, and volunteered at Lincoln Elementary School in Oakland’s Chinatown. She continues to offer her services as a mentor, tutor and emcee for nonprofit fundraisers, civic events, and political debates. After more than three decades at Channel 5, she has switched careers to partner with the Oakland Unified School District. Sherry, a product of Oakland’s public schools and a Cal grad (Go Bears!), is developing a website for, by and about the students to give them a “voice” for their achievements.

2011 Silver Circle Honoree

Suzanne Saunders Shaw

KGO 7, KRON 4, KNTV NBC Bay Area

Four-time Emmy® award winning journalist Suzanne Saunders Shaw joined NBC Bay Area in May, 2009 in a new role of Editorial Director, developing opinions and fostering debate on pressing state and local issues, especially education and fiscal politics. Suzanne started her television career in 1975, shooting and reporting for KSBWSalinas and KSBY- San Luis Obispo. She then dropped the camera to write and produce for KTVU Channel 2, before moving on to Anchor/ Reporter positions at KGO ABC 7 (1977-1988) and KRON 4 (1989-2000). With Stan Bunger, Shaw also co-hosted the nationally aired technology shows New Media News and Next Step. In 2000, she joined MyPrimeTime.com as a reporter for Prime Movers, a feature segment about the Silicon Valley tech boom airing on Nightly Business Report on PBS. Suzanne attended UC Berkeley and graduated cum laude from Stanford. She has received numerous awards, including a Columbia DuPont for documentary production. She remains active in a variety of Stanford University funded education outreach enterprises.

2011 Silver Circle Honoree

Angelo Stalis

KFSN ABC 30

The longest, on-air weathercaster in the Fresno market, Angelo Stalis has spent the past 41 years at KFSN ABC 30. Starting as an announcer/director, Stalis delivered his first weathercast in 1976. He remains the most beloved and dedicated weatherman in California’s Central Valley, and a constant, reliable source for weather information. Stalis enjoys visiting schools in Central California to talk about weather and has helped run “Moments for MS,” a long-time campaign for the Multiple Sclerosis Society. Other volunteer community involvement includes: the Fresno Shrine Club, Sons in Retirement, Combined Health Appeal, and the San Joaquin United Air Pollution Control District. Stalis is also involved in many ABC 30 community events such as Toys for Tots and the Central California Pint-For-Pint Blood Drive. He has been recognized with the Armed Forces Outstanding Service Award, the Fresno Salutes America’s Best Award, the Fresno Bee News Anchor All Star and the Angelo Stalis Day in 2010.

2011 Silver Circle Honoree

Jim Vargas

KTVU Channel 2

Jim Vargas recently retired from KTVU Channel 2 after 41 years in the news business. He began his career at KJEO in Fresno where he wrote, reported and shot film. After nearly two years there, he was hired at San Francisco’s KGO ABC 7 where he worked 20 years. For much of that time he was Political and Public Affairs Editor including covering the Capitol in Sacramento. Vargas moved to KTVU Channel 2 in 1993, staying there until 1998 when he moved to KRON’s Bay TV before settling back to KTVU ten years ago. Few reporters have the depth of knowledge and contacts that Vargas developed over four decades. He has extensively involved himself in charities, fund raisers and special events including many years as a volunteer and committee member for the Sausalito Art Festival benefitting non-profits and students. He is on the board of the Godfather’s Club of the St. Vincent’s School for Boys. He plans to increase his charitable activities in retirement.

2010 Silver Circle Honoree

Lynn R. Friedman

KRO 4, KGO ABC 7

Lynn Friedman has worked at KTSF, KFTY, VideoWest, MTV, KRON and CNN in production, promotion, public affairs, traffic, studio, field, photographer, and, since 1993 as news editor at KGO-TV. In 1990, she received a Fulbright Fellowship to teach TV production at Radio Televisão Portuguesa in Lisbon. Friedman has received: 11 Emmy® Awards; numerous AP & RTNDA awards and two national Edward R. Morrow and Humane Society’s Genesis recognitions for her editing skills. A former NATAS chapter President, Alternate Trustee and Governor, she was also a member of the Awards and Emmy® Event Committees. Friedman is past chair of the Technology Committee and continues to chair the Cinema Club, while fostering a strong alliance with the Northern California TV/Film Community. Her continued dedication in maintaining the high standards of the National Television Academy has been recognized with the Governors’ Service Medallion.

2010 Silver Circle Honoree

Marty Gonzalez

KRON 4, SFSU

In addition to his work at KRON 4, Marty Gonzalez is a Professor and Academic Advisor in the Broadcast and Electronic Communications Arts Department at San Francisco State University. Prior to being named Daybreak weekend anchor in 1996, Gonzalez was a general assignment reporter for KRON 4, the East Bay Bureau chief for KGO-TV and a general assignment reporter and Producer/Host of De Colores (a monthly public affairs show exploring Latino issues) at KCRA in Sacramento. Gonzalez has traveled the U.S. and the world to cover: Pope John Paul II; NASA; the gray whales migration; the 1985 Mexico City earthquake; the Northridge earthquake and Alaska’s 25th anniversary of statehood; special reports and documentaries from China and Cuba. Gonzalez’ reporting on the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989 contributed to KGO’s Peabody Award. He has also received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists. His community involvement includes: The Contra Costa Food Bank; The Contra Costa Crisis Center (suicide prevention) and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.

2010 Silver Circle Honoree

Sid Milburn

KITV 4

Sidney Milburn started at KITV 4 in Honolulu in 1983. Currently he is the Senior Producer/Director responsible for commercials and some local programming. Milburn worked in many capacities within production and news before moving into a management position in 1987. He has traveled multiple times to Asia and Europe for program assignments; working over 25 consecutive years on the broadcast of Merrie Monarch Festival which is the preeminent hula competition in the world; and producing non-broadcast programs Milburn has managed a production department undergoing the adjustment of future robotics, diminished manpower and reduced resources. In addition to mentoring many of KITV’s employees, he’s tried his best to save their jobs. His involvement in the community has enhanced KITV’s reputation as a “locals-first” station, and his willingness to step in and assume any role in production operations has assured a stable work environment for those under his directorship. Sid is currently a NATAS Governor.

2010 Silver Circle Honoree

Joyce Mitchell

4U Productions

Passion is what drives Joyce Mitchell. Couple that with 40-years of experience in TV as a journalist and Joyce strives to produce memorable programs that make a difference in this community, nation, and world. She has four regional Emmy® Awards for her documentary work and 20 nominations. In 2010, Joyce was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) San Francisco/Northern California Chapter’s Silver Circle. She’s also won an Associated Press California-Nevada Best Documentary award for a program on teens and violence. Joyce now serves as a Governor on the Board of NATAS.

In 1972, after graduating editor-in-chief of her college newspaper, the second woman to hold the job, Joyce infiltrated the then male-dominated newspaper business, becoming one of two women and the youngest member of the Capitol Press Corp in Sacramento. She helped pioneer political reporting for women in the early and mid 70s.

Joyce left the political arena to pursue a Master’s Degree and accepted an internship at Sacramento NBC Affiliate KCRA. She was hired to produce newscasts and worked 13 years at Channel 3, eight years producing the 11 O’Clock News. She then moved over to CBS13 where she stayed 10 years, producing election coverage and other special projects. From there, she was hired as Senior Producer at KVIE Public Television and honed her skills in long-format TV. Joyce also taught Broadcast Journalism at Sacramento State University for 16 years. She has a BA in Government-Journalism and an MA in Communication Studies.

Now an independent television producer, In 2014, Joyce produced the live, statewide, one-hour Gubernatorial Debate between Gov. Jerry Brown and Neel Kashkari. She specializes in television that makes a difference. Documentary projects include:
- Collision Course/Teen Addiction Epidemic (2012 Emmy® Award)
- A Choice to Heal/Mental Health in California – with Mariel Hemingway
- Stand and Salute/Our Veterans
- College: Making It Happen – with Edward James Olmos (English & Spanish)
- Dave Brubeck: A Castle’s Song
- AIDS in the 21st Century
- The Journey Ahead/End-of-life

Joyce has traveled to Romania, producing a documentary updating the American people on the plight of abandoned and orphaned children in Eastern Europe. Though she sometimes tackles difficult topics, she is committed to using TV to raise awareness about important topics.

An HIV/AIDS activist since 1986, Joyce co-founded and chairs the Sacramento non-profit Capital City AIDS Fund. She’s helped bring-in $3-million for the Sacramento HIV/AIDS community and is committed to using television to improve and save lives.

2010 Silver Circle Honoree

Pam Moore

KRON 4

Pam Moore joined KRON in 1991 and now anchors the KRON 4 Evening News. Before joining KRON 4, Moore worked at WBZ-TV in Boston as an anchor/reporter and was a general assignment reporter at KCBS-TV in Los Angeles. Moore’s work on KRON 4’s news series About Race garnered many awards, including: a Peabody Award; the Pew Center Batten Prize for Civic Journalism; an In-Depth Reporting Award from the Northern California Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists; top honors from the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame and Best Documentary Award from the California Associated Press Television Radio Association. Moore has also received an Emmy® and recognition from the Associated Press, the California Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, and the Bay Area Black Journalists Association. She has been honored for her community service by: United Negro College Fund; YMCA of the East Bay; African American Advocates and the East Oakland Youth Development Center. Moore is also on the board of Friends of Faith which provides support and information to women who are diagnosed with breast cancer, especially uninsured and under-served women.

2010 Silver Circle Honoree

Ed Pearce

KOLO 8

A member of a pioneer Nevada family, Ed Pearce gained his first media experience as a teenager working for his hometown newspaper and his family’s radio station KVLV in Fallon. His first television job came during his senior year at the University of Nevada, as a reporter/anchor for KOLO-TV. In 1970, he was named News Director/Anchor for Reno’s KTVN-TV. In 1984, he left journalism to join the Nugget Casino as Director of Community Affairs. He returned to KOLO-TV in 1988, eventually becoming its News Director. In 2001, he returned to reporting as KOLO’s Senior News Correspondent. Pearce is a founding member of Northern Nevada’s Secret Witness Program, which in its 30 years has helped solve more than 1,000 crimes, including 30 murders. Recently the program re-named their annual award “The Ed Pearce Crime Stopper of the Year Award.” Pearce has won many other awards for his investigative and innovative stories including: the Edward R. Murrow Regional Award; regional Emmy® nominations and Nevada Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

2010 Silver Circle Honoree

Randy Shandobil

KTVU Channel 2

Randy Shandobil began his television career in 1977 as a writer/producer for San Francisco’s KGO TV News. He moved to KTVU in Oakland in 1978 and has worked there ever since. At KTVU he helped create Segment Two for the Ten O’Clock News, produced the Ten O’Clock News and did general assignment reporting before becoming Political Editor in 1998. He has interviewed seven U.S. Presidents and won numerous awards, including: two Walter Cronkite Awards for Excellence in Television Political Journalism; four California Journalism Awards; the Society of Professional Journalists’ Freedom of Information Award; numerous local Emmy® awards; a Gold Medal at the New York International Film & Television Festival and the Society of Professional Journalists Career Achievement Award. Shandobil is a long-time advocate for more innovative coverage of politics and government in broadcast journalism as well as a featured speaker and panelist at many political journalism seminars across the country.