You may have noticed me popping up on air more often lately, so I guess I’d better explain myself. My name is Zach and I’m a multimedia journalist.

But what exactly is that? Basically it means I do a little bit of everything.

When I first started at KTIV in May, I was hired on as the evening producer – which is writing the newscast, putting the stories in order, and other miscellaneous duties. But, I’ve always had the goal to be a reporter, and I recently got the opportunity to move into that.

 “Multimedia Journalist” has recently become sort of a buzz word in the TV industry. The gist of it is essentially reporting… but on several platforms, namely on-air, online and sometimes even on your phone! Now more than ever, around the country, TV news is rapidly evolving. Some reporters in big markets like San Francisco are now shooting their own video on top of gathering the facts. But that’s what we’ve been doing at KTIV since… forever, so this “shift” really isn’t anything new for us!

The biggest catalyst to change traditional TV news is easily the internet. It’s changed the way newsrooms work. No more is the news strictly morning, noon, 5, 6 and 10; the internet has made news gathering and news breaking a 24/7 game. That means when we have the facts, they’re going on ktiv.com, we’re not waiting until our scheduled broadcast.

While all of this means that everyone is doing a little bit more, I welcome the challenge. You can get the news from a million and one different places, and we are truly grateful that you choose KTIV on all of our different platforms.

Just a little bit about myself… I am really excited about moving into my new position. I’m not at all exaggerating when I say this is the only job I’ve ever wanted! Pretty much since birth, I have been fascinated with everything involving TV news and I feel lucky to get my start at KTIV. For one, I’m only two hours away from my family (Humboldt, IA); and two, the people that make up the newsroom make work really enjoyable! Siouxland is full of great people too and I look forward to meeting many more in the future! So if you see a big guy out lugging around a camera and tripod, don’t be shy!

And just like that it’s gone.  I shaved the goatee off live on the air on News Channel Four Today this morning.  To those who voted in favor of allowing me to keep the growth, please don’t be too disappointed.  Sean and Rita at KG95 radio station and Scott Miller at Z-98 have already read me the riot act.  Sean, a good friend whom I have known for years and who was the DJ at my wedding reception last year, called me a patsy.  Rita sounded beside herself.  Earlier in the week she used the word “hot” to describe my goatee look.  That ego-boosting kind of endorsement is hard to ignore when weighing whether to let go of the “goat.”

My wife Melissa is in a mild state of mourning.  So she’s progressing.  Earlier, she was in a state of denial.  Melissa is the one who helped convince News Director Bridget Breen to let me try out the goatee on the air on in the first place.  Frankly, I was quite suprised that Bridget agreed to let me give it a go.  Traditionally, TV news anchors and goatees don’t go together.  Sportscasters, maybe.  Weathercasters, mmm.. perhaps.  But an anchor?  Goatee-sporting news anchors are few and far between.

The final vote tally was actually in favor of keeping the goatee.  52-percent of the folks taking part in our KTIV Web Poll said keep it.  43-percent said shave it.  In all, 1052 votes were cast.  That’s triple the number of some of our Web Polls.  I’m a bit flabbergasted by that!  There were phone calls to KTIV, too.  Many callers were pro-goatee; many were anti-goatee.

Ultimately, I guess I’m just not a goatee guy.  I don’t really want to have to maintain one and, truth be told, it would take at least a couple more weeks for it to start looking respectable.  That’s a long time to be on the air with a dirty chin.

There are practical considerations, too.  KTIV has many promotions, photographs and other images of me clean-shaven.  Those would all need to be updated, and that involves extra expense.

So to the goatee supporters, please don’t hate me!  I feel like a small burden has been lifted off my chin.  I stand by the decision to go clean-shaven.

As I mentioned in my Tuesday blog entry, this is not a life-or-death issue.  We wanted to have some fun and wanted you to take part.  It fits in with the more laid-back atmosphere of our morning newscast, News Channel Four Today.  We like to have fun.

Watch Al Joens shave off his goatee Friday, June 29, 2009 

So thanks to everyone who took part in the KTIV Web Poll… and watch for our upcoming promotion:  “Should Ron Demers grow a long beard like the guys in ZZ Top?”  It’s going to be big!

Here’s the tally thus far in what KTIV Internet Producer Margie Sturgeon has dubbed “Decision Goatee 2009″:

Yes          56.8%

No            37.2%

Not Sure     6%

I think a good number of the yes votes are from friends of my wife.  She’s been calling on the troops to log on and vote in favor of keeping the goatee.  Apparently one of her friends, a former KTIV reporter who now lives in South Carolina, is twittering about it.  I’m not sure if any of this skews the results, but in balloting that takes place on the world wide web, I guess anyone in the world can vote.

Several people have also weighed in with comments on our website or via email.  Here’s a sampling:

            Female viewer:  “Go Al!  It’s the new Hollywood look…a good way to keep up with the newest fashion trend.”

            Male viewer:      “Change is good for all of us!  I vote for you to shave, you look like you have a dirty face.”

            Female viewer: “Al you are a handsome man and with the goatee I think it makes you look drawn and older.  Without it you look young and much more happier. My husband also sports a goatee and when he shaves it he looks much younger and much older with it.  But if they allow you to keep it then you need to do what gives you good self image.”

            Female: ”You got my vote to keep the critter on your face. However, if after a month you still look like that high school kid that wants so much to grow facial hair… but simply can’t… SHAVE.  Meantime… at least you still have hair where it counts!!!”

In the interest of fair disclosure, that last comment came from former KTIV reporter and good friend April Madison who now works in Tucson, Arizona.  She’s not one to beat around the bush.  Or the goatee, as it were.

Some people have called in to the station with their opinions.  Here’s a sampling of phone call comments supplied by KTIV receptionist Robin Small:

            Female viewer: “Yes!  Keep it.”

            Husband and wife:  “No.  Looks horrible, like a bum and we will watch another channel if he doesn’t shave it.”

            Female viewer:  “Al is my favorite news anchor, but shave it off!”

            Male viewer:  “Keep it if it’s combed and neatly trimmed.”

            Male viewer: “Keep it; looks very distinguished, but I’m jealous of his tan.”

            Female viewer:  “No.  Lose the face hair.  Makes him look old and scruffy.”

Good comments, all.  Thanks to everyone who has participated.  Keep the votes and comments coming.  Balloting runs through Friday.

The first thing that I noticed about the Nebraska Supreme Court room is the size.  It’s smaller than the courtrooms in the Federal Courthouse in Sioux City. 

Unlike a district court hearing the attorneys have a limited time to speak.  Erick Vela’s council, Jeff Pickens, says it took him a year to prepare his brief, but only 20 minutes to present it. For that reason the attorney must pick out specific arguments from the written briefs to present orally to the seven Supreme Court Justices.

Much of it is legal jargon that you and I wouldn’t understand and if we could understand it, it might just put us to sleep…as I saw one Justice nodding off during a different hearing.

Much like the U.S. Supreme Court, the State’s high court can take a very long time to hand down a decision.  Pickens says it could take a few weeks but maybe over a year.

The justices won’t return to the courtroom with their decision, instead they will put it in writing. 

It’s amazing how much one can learn spending just a day at the State Capitol.

A lot of people lost money and jobs and with the two, a sense of hope was taken.

What I have noticed in this New Year is that many people, even those in the media, are ready to embrace something better.

And as there will most likely be more stories about layoffs and down days on Wall Street, I think in general, people are ready to move on.

I interviewed Marla today in front of the home where her girls were slain. Just seeing the hurt in her eyes makes you cry yourself. The only other times I’ve cried while working is at soldiers’ funerals.

My heart goes out to Marla Stroman. I wish I would have never met her or have heard of Alysha and Kendra… that would mean her girls would be alive today.

I also wish I would have known them, they sounded like wonderful, fun-loving little girls.

I also got more insight to the hell Marla has been through this past year.

Marla was the only mother, Larry Harris’ 3-year old son knew. She was to adopt him in towards the end of January in ’08. The day her girls died, the state took the little boy away from Marla. He’s been adopted by another family. And she’s been ordered to never see him again. Since he was in the home at the time of the killings, officials say it would be too hard for him to forget if he had contact with Marla since that is the one thing connecting the tragedy.

Larry Harris’ little brother lives near-by. He wants his brother to go to prison for the rest of his life. He helps Marla make it through tough times. He went to clear the snow off Kendra and Alysha’s gravesites so Marla could visit the girls on Christmas. He told me he never saw this evil side to Larry… the killings came as a complete shock.

A complete shock to everyone it seems, but Marla did tell me that 2 weeks before their murders, Larry said to her that he could hurt her in the worst way possible without even touching her. Marla says she thinks he knew exactly what he was talking about.

Marla is in the process of forgiving Larry so she can be at peace. But she says she wants him to get the maximum sentence if the jury finds him guilty.

Many people think/say that reporters are heartless. That we love when people cry on camera. I didn’t love my job today. In fact, I didn’t like it at all. It makes me sad, depressed and angry. But I am happy to give the victim’s a voice. Because without the media no one besides family and friends would stop to remember Alysha and Kendra and I guess that’s how I get through a tough day like today. Although I can’t imagine the “tough days” Marla has endured and will continue to undergo for years to come.

I remember my first interview with a very prominent person like it was yesterday.  My friend called me from the University of South Dakota and said CBS Newsman Bob Schieffer is going to be on campus because he is receiving the Al Neuharth Award for Excellence in the Media, from the University of South Dakota and the Freedom Forum.  He said you should try to do an interview with him!  I immediately picked up the phone and called the public relations department to try and get a one-on-one interview.  At that time they told me they would look into it, but couldn’t guarantee anything.  Several days later I received a call back and was informed that I was one of a few journalists who did get the interview with Mr. Schieffer.  I was so excited and nervous at the same time, but the interview wasn’t for a couple of weeks.

Several weeks later the day finally had come and I was so nervous to do the interview, but I did do my homework and felt well prepared with great questions.  I remember getting a call from one of my “elderly” friends back home, and she told me, “Adam don’t be nervous you’ll be fine, and just remember he puts on his pants the same way you and I do…One leg at a time.”  I thought wow that was an interesting way of looking at it.  Needless to say the interview went great!  I was able to get a great story out of it, learn a lot about the news industry, and get my first interview with a nationally recognized person under my belt.  To this day I have a book signed by Bob Schieffer and remember some great advice he gave me.  He told me, “Adam…Wherever the story is go there…Ask great questions…Get both sides of the story…And report the facts!”  He went on to tell me that the facts are the most important thing in a news story and don’t stray from that.

The second prominent interview I conducted was with NBC Newsman Tom Brokaw.  I remember many people saying how he is from Yankton South Dakota and graduated from the University of South Dakota.  That ended up being true, and when one of his professors passed away he came back for the funeral and memorial.  Doc Farber inspired many people at the University for many years including Tom Brokaw.  I remember standing outside the church the Saturday of the memorial and here comes Tom Brokaw walking across the street.  I remember he just walked up no big motorcade or limo’s just Tom.  It was so neat to see him in person because I had watched him on television for so many years when he was the Anchor on Nightly News.  He gave me a great interview and some great advice for my own career as well!  He said take one step at a time and learn from each experience that comes my way.

During the 2008 Iowa Caucuses I was able to interview all of the presidential candidates.  I was amazed they just kept coming and requesting media coverage.  During that time I told my parents what was going on and they were anxious to hear everyday who I had interviewed and what they were talking about.  When I first interviewed Senator Barack Obama he was new to the national scene, and told me he wanted to get to know the people of Iowa.  He was convinced that’s how he was going to get ahead in the race.  Senator John McCain wasn’t very popular in Iowa, and I remember reporting on how his campaign was having a bit of trouble in the beginning.  When I interviewed him about mid-stream before the Caucuses he told me that he was going to carry on his campaign and that was that.  Needless to say he did pull out the Republican Party’s nomination and is now very popular just as Obama is.

Last but certainly not least, I am very excited about everyone that I get to interview prominent or not, because I would like to think I learn a great deal from everyone I come in contact with.  Some of those people I learn the most from, are the “little guys.” Those who you wouldn’t think have a lot to say, they may not be in prominent roles in society, and you would never think of asking information from.  I really enjoy interviewing “everyday” people because I think everyone has something to bring to the table in this world and it’s very interesting listening to the lessons others pass along.  I remember interviewing a single mom several years ago who applied to the Salvation Army that Christmas to receive gifts.  I always remember her telling me if that application isn’t accepted her kids won’t have a Christmas.  The application was accepted and she did get the Christmas for her kids.  Or the family whose house was broken into before Thanksgiving, and their turkey along with money they had saved was all stolen.  I remember they ended up going to a families house for the holiday, and the person was later arrested.  So you can see through my job I get to interview a lot of people and I each and everyone that I have done have made me a better person and a better journalist!