Hello everybody following #jectv today! My guest today is @wcco TV morning reporter @StanfordWCCO, so lets get started!
Q – #1 Lets start off by asking @StandfordWCCO (Chris), where did you grow up and attend High School? Where then did you go to college?
Chris: I grew up in Stevens Point, WI. Went to Stevens Point Area Senior High (SPASH), undergrad at UW-Stevens Point
I guess you could say I didn’t stray that far from home for a while. Central Wis. is nice, but I needed more
Q – #2 What kind of classes did you excel at in HS, and what was your major when you went to UW Stevens Point?
Chris: I really enjoyed this electronic comm. class I took my Junior year. I took the same course my Senior year helping…
the younger students with their projects. That was my first experience sharing my knowledge in that type of setting…
I built on that later. I graduated college with a BA in Comm with an emphasis in Mass Media.
Q – #3 How did you get your food in the door for becoming a reporter? Where did you intern? What kinds of things did you do?
Chris: I first interned at WSAW as a paid production assistant. I ran studio camera and audio. That’s where I discovered my
fascination with TV news. That’s also where I learned how to shoot. They let me shoot sports, and news. I loved it.
Seeing my video on TV was wild! I couldn’t believe it. I later left that station to intern at WAOW in their newsroom.
WAOW hired me right out of school as a producer/reporter.
Q – #4 Where is WAOW, and what led you eventually come to Minneapolis and @wcco TV?
Chris: It’s in Wausau, WI. It was my home market. They really liked that I was local. I anchor the mornings there, then
I went to Eau Claire to WQOW to anchor/produce the 10pm. When my contract was up, I wanted to report in Minneapolis
Landing any job in TV is hard. I thought I won the lottery landing at @WCCO. I never thought it would happen.
Q – #5 Interesting. What drew you to MSP over say Green Bay, Madison or Milwaukee in your home state?
Chris: I’ve always loved coming to Minneapolis. I’ve always had fun visiting. The city has a great feel to it.
That, and my then wife (then fiance) was getting her Pharm. D at the U. We lived in Hudson when I was job hunting
TYPO ALERT!!! Now wife (then fiance) – I’m very happily married and have never been divorced
Q – #6 As someone from WI, have you seen or experienced anything in MN that is different from life in WI? Style? Attitudes?
Chris: It’s far more diverse here. There’s more culture. But I love Madison and Milwaukee. Those cities are fun.. wow.
I think the attitudes in general are similar. We’re all from the Midwest.
I’m from a smaller town in WIs. and have never lived in a “big city” before. But I feel like I fit right in
Q – #7 More about YOU now Chris. FAVORITE(S): Restaurant, store, comfort food, recent book or movie. National anchor.
Chris: Peter Jennings will always be my favorite. There will never be another. I try to keep it healthy with my diet, but…
My guilty pleasure is an unnecessary bowl of cereal. I love anywhere with good sushi, or a laid back bar and grill
I’m a guy who appreciates good cinema, but can laugh at the silly humor of South Park. Those guys are incredibly clever
Q – #8 What are some neighborhoods and places in the Twin Cities that you’ve enjoyed exploring recently?
Chris: I finally got my bike out and road along Minnehaha Creek and around a couple of the lakes.
I’ve also played a few of the city’s public golf courses. I love to golf. They’re a great value.
Q – #9 I saw that you anchored on SAT night by the way. Congrats! To close, what kind of stories do you like to cover?
Chris: Covering features. I like to tell ‘people stories’. It’s a great way for the viewer to relate and get a point across.
I like that I can do a feature in the morning and then cover breaking, hard news for the noon. It keeps it interesting.
I have the privilege of meeting new people every day and always learning something new in the process
@JoelECarlson: Super! Thanks Chris for your time and comments today. If you’d like to have him answer a question, DM me and then. . .
. . . I’ll post a a YouTube video on Friday of Chris answering some of your questions. Thanks again @StanfordWCCO!
Chris: This was fun. Hopefully I was interesting enough!