What's News @ KCBS

KCBS Wins Regional Honors

March 2, 2010 --  KCBS has been named the winner of four Associated Press TV/Radio Association awards, and has been nominated for eight others, more than any other station throughout twelve western states.

The KCBS winners:

-          Stan Bunger and Susan Leigh Taylor for Best Anchor Team

-          Doug Sovern for the Bill Stout Award for Enterprise for “AIDS in Africa: Faces of Hope”

-          Doug Sovern for Best Special Program for “AIDS in Africa: Faces of Hope”

-          Stan Bunger and Steve Bitker for Best Podcast (not regularly-scheduled) for “KCBS Sports Fans”

The KCBS nominees (winners to be announced in June):

-          The KCBS News Team for Best News Broadcast for the KCBS 5 PM News. Our entry was the 5 PM hour on November 5. Jeff Bell and Patti Reising were the anchors, Tom Lippi and Mark Seelig were on the desk, Todd Smoot produced the open, Sheryl Raines was on traffic, Anthony Passarelli was on sports, John Frierson was on the Money Watch, Angela Corral was the writer and Christine Samra was the P.A. Featured reporters were Margie Shafer, Chris Filippi, Mike Colgan and Bob Melrose.

-          KCBS News Team for Best Live Coverage of a News Event for “Bay Bridge Re-Opening.” Our entry was the 6 AM hour on September 8. Stan Bunger and Susan Leigh Taylor were the anchors, Kim Wonderley was on traffic with support from Mike Tracy and Alan Brooks, Frni Beyer and Ted Goldberg were on the desk, featured reporters were Holly Quan, Tim Ryan, Dave Padilla and Phil Matier. Diana Shook was the writer and Justine Guintu was the P.A.

-          The KCBS News Team for Best Coverage of an Ongoing Story for “OPD Shooting.” Our entry included reports by Tim Ryan, Mark Seelig, Doug Sovern, Holly Quan and Margie Shafer.

-          Margie Shafer for Best Spot News Story for “BART Shooting Riots” (This entry also included a report from George Harris.)

-          Doug Sovern for Best Investigative Reporting for “Hard Times: California’s Broken Parole System”

-          Mike Sugerman for Best Serious Feature for “Murder Mom”

-          Mike Sugerman for Best Light Feature for “Hula Hoop”

-          Doug Sovern for Pat Davis Reporter of the Year.

KCBS ALL NEWS RADIO WINS FOUR APTRA MARK TWAIN AWARDS

March 2, 2010 -- San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose-- KCBS All News 740AM/106.9 FM won four prestigious Associated Press Television-Radio Association's (APTRA) awards. The station was recognized in the 2010 Mark Twain Awards competition for California, Nevada, Hawaii, Arizona, New Mexico, Washington, Idaho, Colorado, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, and Alaska.     Read more

KCBS Saddened by Death of Former Anchor
January 8, 2010  - Longtime KCBS and CBS news anchor Mike Pulsipher was found dead in his home in San Francisco Friday. He was 61 years old. Read more.
Watch a Video Tribute here.

KCBS Announced First Fest Winner

January 1, 2010 -- In an annual virtual festival held each New Year's Day to celebrate innovative, historical, and unique achievements that originated in Silicon Valley, KCBS was named the winner in the Business and Technology category as the First Radio Station.

Click here to read more about First Fest

See article in MercuryNews.com
 

KCBS Welcomes Jason Brooks to the Team

December 17, 2009 - Jason Brooks joins the KCBS News Team as the new Moneywatch Reporter for both KCBS and CBS Moneywatch.com.  For the past five years, he was the money reporter at KIRO, the CBS radio affiliate in Seattle. Jason also writes a daily blog and has been a frequent contributor to CBS Radio News and CNBC. Originally from Connecticut, Jason attended the University of Oregon and worked as a radio and TV reporter/anchor in Spokane before joining KIRO.

In addition to his duties for KCBS, Jason will file CBS Moneywatch reports for the CBS Radio Network and for CBS Moneywatch.com.

Read his bio

KCBS Celebrates Centennial

November 13, 2009 -- The 100 Year Anniversary Gala for KCBS Radio and Palace Hotel was the party of the century.  Displays honored KCBS' 100 year legacy as the World's First Broadcasting Station.  Entertainment included performers from Cirque du Soleil, Beach Blanket Babylon, Smuin Ballet, the Dick Bright Orchestra, and of course the Eyewitness Blues Band.  Click here for more photos
 

More Kudos for Doug Sovern

November 11, 2009 - Congratulations to Doug Sovern, who won an Excellence in Journalsim Award from the Northern California Chapter of SPJ (Society of Professional Journalists).

The SPJ is largely a print journalism organization, and KCBS was the only commercial broadcast station, TV or Radio, to win an award. Doug won in the Feature Writing category for his features on the presidential campaign last year.

KCBS Wins RTNDA Awards

November 2009 -- Good news from the Northern California RTNDA awards banquet in San Francisco Saturday night.

In addition to Dave McQueen’s Lifetime Achievement Award, the KCBS News Staff won seven awards for news coverage, more than any other station. Our winners:

-          The KCBS News Team in the Breaking News category for “Tanker Fire.” The on-scene reporters were Holly Quan, Bob Melrose and Margie Shafer, with Peter Schofield in Sky Two; the anchors were Stan Bunger and Susan Leigh Taylor, with Kim Wonderley on traffic; Frni Beyer was the editor and Ted Goldberg was the producer; Diana Shook was the writer.

-          Doug Sovern in the Investigative Reporting category for “Hard Times: California’s Broken Parole System.”
Listen:  Part 1   Part 2   Part 3   Part 4   Part 5

-          Doug Sovern in the Multi-Part Series category for “Down, But Not Out.”
Listen:   Part 1   Part 2   Part 3   Part 4  

-          Doug Sovern in the Light Feature category for “Bye, Bye to the Republican Guy.”

-          Mike Sugerman in the Specialty Reporting Category for “About the Bay.”

-          Mike Sugerman in the Use of Sound Category for “Trickle-Down Economy.”

-          Roberta Gonzales in the Weather Segment category. (Roberta also won the TV weather award.)

Bob Price Retires

October 2009 -- After 40 years in the business (24 of those years at KCBS), Financial Reporter Bob Price retires.  His last day was Friday, October 30th.
KCBS' Stan Bunger reports on Bob's Final Day
 

Eyewitness Blues Band Performs for Charity

October, 2009 -- The 23rd annual B.R. Cohn Charity Events Fall Music Festival and Golf Classic ran October 3rd and 4th at the B.R. Cohn Winery amphitheatre in Glen Ellen.  The event featured Journey, The Doobie Brothers, and our very own Eyewitness Blues Band.  The event benefited Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital Level II Trauma Center,  Boys & Girls Clubs of Sonoma, Valley,  Bread & Roses, and the Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance.


The band gathers just before taking the stage. (left to right): Chris Detrick ("Citizen Journalist"), Stan Bunger (KCBS), Mike Sugerman (KCBS and CBS5), Joe Vazquez (CBS5), Zack Heene (CBS5), Doug Sovern (KCBS)


Mike Sugerman singing his song, "Eyewitness Blues"


Stan Bunger


Mike Sugerman shows off the event t-shirt
 

KCBS Named First Legendary Station

Left to right: Retired KCBS sports and news reporter Bob Safford, retired KCBS anchor Al Hart, KCBS morning news anchor Stan Bunger, retired KCBS anchor Don Mozley, retired KCBS sports director Don Klein.

At the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame luncheon in Berkeley honoring KCBS as the Hall of Fame’s first Legendary Station. September 29, 2009.

SPJ Announces 2009 WINNERS

September 21, 2009 - SAN FRANCISCO -- The Northern California Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists announced the 2009 journalism awards.  KCBS' Doug Sovern won for Best Feature Writing for Broadcast for three thought-provoking reports: "Back to the Bayou,"  "20 Seconds" and "Bye, Bye to the Republican Guy," which "demonstrate original and clever broadcast writing, and a unique approach to mixing soundbites, music and commentary."

 

KCBS ANNOUNCES ANNUAL HEALTH ETC EVENT WITH KEYNOTE SPEAKER DR. SANJAY GUPTA

September 2, 2009 - SAN JOSE/SAN FRANCISCO - KCBS ALL NEWS RADIO (740 AM and 106.9 FM, www.kcbs.com) holds the Fifth Annual Health Etc event on  Saturday, September 26, 2009 at the spacious San Francisco Concourse Exhibition Center.

This year's keynote Speaker will be Dr. Sanjay Gupta, chief medical correspondent for the health and medical unit at CNN. Gupta, a practicing neurosurgeon and an assistant professor of neurosurgery, plays an integral role in the network's medical coverage, which includes lead reporting on breaking medical news, regular health and medical updates for American Morning, anchoring the half-hour weekend medical affairs program House Call with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and reporting for CNN documentaries. Read more 

A Legendary Station

August 5, 2009 -- The Bay Area Radio Museum and Hall of Fame has announced KCBS as the recipient of its first Legendary Station Award.

 The museum's board of directors cited KCBS' 100 years of service to the Bay Area.

 This year, KCBS is celebrating its centennial as the world's first broadcasting station, founded by Charles Doc Herrold in San Jose in 1909.

 The board said the Legendary Station award recognizes KCBS' role in the growth of broadcasting both locally and worldwide, and the contributions of the station's employees in serving the community over the last hundred years.

Read the complete press release here.

You can learn more about the KCBS Centennial here.  
 

New Addition to the KCBS News Staff

July 20, 2009 -- John Evans is the newest addition to the KCBS news team as the weeknight anchor.   He spent the past 7 plus years hosting the afternoon show at Classical 102.1 KDFC.   Prior to that, John was a smooth jazz and rock DJ, but his first love has always been journalism.  He’s worked in San Francisco radio for 30 years anchoring and reporting the news at several well-known stations including KPIX, K-101, KFRC and KYA. Read his complete bio.

 

Making Lemons into Lemonade: 

Practical Tools to Help You Squeeze Opportunity from a Sour Economy

San Francisco- - - On Thursday, July 30, All News KCBS (740AM/106.9FM/ www.kcbs.com) presents a business mixer event panel:   “Making Lemons into Lemonade:  Practical Tools to Help You Squeeze Opportunity from a Sour Economy.”   The panel will shed light on the real estate market and the most prevalent issues facing today’s homebuyer.

Read press release

KCBS Celebrates Centennial

San Jose-San Francisco --  KCBS All News Radio 740 AM and 106.9 FM celebrates 100 years of news, information, and innovation as the world’s first broadcasting station on June 11th 2009 where it all began on the corner of First and San Fernando in San Jose, California in the Fairmont Plaza. 

Read press release

 

The Best of Silicon Valley

Grand Rapids, MI. -- Tom Stienstra's Outdoors Report, which appears three times Saturdays on KCBS 740AM and FM 106.9, won first place in America for best outdoor recreation radio show at the annual banquet for the Outdoor Writers Association of America. The winning entry was "Bridging the Family Gap."

He was the nation's top award winner at the OWAA banquet at Grand Rapids, Michigan, with seven awards for columns, features, photography and radio.

Stienstra won first place in the nation for best outdoor column/essay of the year for the column, "A Pal's Ashes." He was also named as the first place winner as national wilderness writer of the year for the story, "Power of Place." Both stories appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Other awards were for photography and feature writing, including second place as national Backcountry Sportsman of the Year.

Tom Stienstra appears on KCBS Saturdays at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 12:35 p.m.  Click here for more info.

San Francisco Peninsula Press Club 2009 Radio Awards

June 6, 2009 --  KCBS was awarded 8 honors from the 2009 San Francisco Peninsula Press Club. They include two General Excellence Awards for KCBS for both our broadcast and our website.

General Excellence
First Place: KCBS Radio, KCBS News Team

Breaking News
First Place: KCBS Radio, “Tanker Fire,” KCBS News Team

Feature Story of Light Nature
First Place: KCBS Radio, “Water Cops,” Mike Sugerman

Feature Story of Serious Nature
First Place: KCBS Radio, “Child Alzheimer's,” Holly Quan

Special Program
First Place: KCBS Radio, “Olympic Torch Run,” KCBS News Team

Documentary
First Place: KCBS Radio, “Frantic for Food,” Holly Quan, Ed Cavagnaro

Use of Sound
First Place: KCBS Radio, “Barista,” Mike Sugerman

General Excellence in New Media
First Place: KCBS Radio, “kcbs.com,” KCBS News & Web Teams
 

The KCBS Centennial in the news:

KCBS Wins Murrow, Headliner Awards

April 9, 2009 -- The KCBS News Staff has been named the winner of four regional Edward R. Murrow Awards, including the station’s 10th consecutive award for Overall Excellence.
 
The winners from the region, which includes all of California, Nevada, Hawaii and Guam, will now compete for the national Murrow Awards from the Radio-TV News Directors Association. According to the RTNDA, the Murrow Awards “reward the excellence that Edward R. Murrow made a standard for the electronic news profession.”

The National Headliner Awards, which judge journalism entries from TV, radio stations, and newspapers across the country, has named the KCBS staff the winner of two first place (including Best Newscast) and two second place awards.

The Regional Edward R. Murrow Winners:

-          The KCBS News Team for Overall Excellence. The entry was a 40:00 compilation of the newsroom’s best work from 2008.

-          The KCBS News Team for Best Newscast. The entry was the 5 pm hour of May 15, the day of the court ruling on gay marriage. Anchors were Jeff Bell and Patti Reising; editor was Tom Lippi; producer was Joe Rogers; featured reporters were Bob Melrose, Barbara Taylor, Holly Quan, Chris Filippi, Margie Shafer, Mark Seelig and Doug Sovern; writer was Christine DeGennaro; with Sheryl Raines on traffic, Hal Ramey on sports, Bob Price on money, and Roberta Gonzales on weather; production assistant was Will Uhlig.

-          The KCBS News Team for Continuing Coverage. The entry was a compilation of the newsroom’s work on the gay marriage story throughout the year.

-          Holly Quan for Best Documentary. The entry was “Frantic for Food,” the investigation of the questions surrounding the care, diet and weight of the tiger that killed Carlos Souza at the San Francisco Zoo.

The National Headliner Winners:

-          First Place: The KCBS News Team for Best Newscast. The entry was the 9 am hour from a stormy January 4. Anchors were Stan Bunger and Susan Leigh Taylor; editor was Frni Beyer; producer was Ted Goldberg; featured reporters were Holly Quan, Matt Bigler, Dave Padilla and Bob Melrose; writer was Diana Shook; with Kim Wonderley on traffic, Steve Bitker on sports, Bob Price on money, and Tracy Humphrey on weather; production assistant was Will Uhlig.

-          First Place: Doug Sovern in the Continuing Coverage category for “Campaign 2008.”

-          Second Place: The KCBS News and Website Team for Best Radio Station Online Journalism. The web producer is Connie C. Kim. Web writers include Jennifer Seelig, Joe Rogers, Sue McGuire, Cynthia Louie, Megan Goldsby, Wendy Levine, Christine DeGennaro and Christina Fung.

-          Second Place: Doug Sovern in the News Series category for “Down but Not Out,” his in depth reports on coping with the economic crisis.