Ron Kershaw Explained

Birth Date:19 August 1943
Birth Place:North Carolina, US
Death Place:Chicago, Illinois, US
Occupation:television news director, reporter
Years Active:1974-1988
Known For:Action News

Ron Kershaw (August 19, 1943 – July 3, 1988) was an American television news reporter.[1] Kershaw was the news director in several U.S. markets, including New York City, Chicago and Baltimore.[2]

Early life

Kershaw grew up in Hendersonville, North Carolina, and later moved to Arizona where he attended Glendale Community College. From 1961 to 1969 he served in the United States Air Force.[2]

News director

In 1974, Kershaw was hired by WBAL-TV in Baltimore to shore up its sagging news ratings. He introduced the Action News format, hired new talent, such as Mike Hambrick And Ron Smith[3] and moved the station from last to first in less than a year. Sue Simmons and Spencer Christian were also among Kershaw's protégés.

In 1979, Kershaw moved on to WNBC-TV in New York, where he collaborated with Peter Sang in bringing the "control room" set into TV news, taking the station from last in the ratings to a market leader in two years.[4] Kershaw was also mentor to Bucky Gunts,[5] who worked for Kershaw in Baltimore and Chicago. In 1982, Kershaw NBC promoted Kershaw to be the program producer of NBC Sports.[2]

Personal life and death

While in Houston, Kershaw had been dating Jessica Savitch, a news reporter with a rival television station in Texas. Kershaw helped Savitch develop her reporting skills during their stormy ten-year relationship.[6] The relationship was depicted in the made-for-television movie: Almost Golden, about Savitch's life.[7]

In 1987, Kershaw met Giselle Fernandez, whom he had hired as a reporter at WBBM-TV. They were engaged to be married when Kershaw died of pancreatic and liver cancer on July 3, 1988, at age 44.[8] [9] [10] Kershaw is survived by a daughter, Lee Ann and a son, Beau Kershaw, an award-winning photojournalist, who once worked at Kershaw's old station, WBAL-TV in Baltimore.[11] Young Kershaw's awards include an Emmy Award[12] three Emmy nominations, a Grantham Prize and the duPont-Columbia silver baton.[13]

Notes and References

  1. Book: books.google.com . 978-1-56025-816-2 . 2023-03-25 . 2023-04-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230404013507/https://books.google.com/books?id=nSWawtYzZEUC&dq=ron+kershaw+news+director&pg=PA80 . live . Dunne . John Gregory . 2006 . Thunder's Mouth Press .
  2. Web site: RON KERSHAW, 44, NEWS EXECUTIVE AT CHANNEL 2 . chicagotribune.com . 4 July 1988 . the Chicago Tribune . 17 January 2020 . 2023-04-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230404013507/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1988-07-04-8801120520-story.html . live.
  3. Web site: Lang . Robert . Someone Had to Say It . wbal.com . Wbal radio Baltimore . 17 January 2020 . 14 May 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210514160739/http://roblang.wbal.com/2011/10/someone-had-to-say-it.html . live .
  4. [News 4 New York]
  5. Web site: movies2.nytimes.com . 2007-06-02 . 2012-09-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120921222703/http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/filmography.html?p_id=439097&mod=awards . live.
  6. Web site: The Story of Jessica Savitch . Nash . Alanna . Review by Bill Long . Bill Long . 2008-05-13 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080101031124/http://www.drbilllong.com/CurrentEventsVIII/Savitch.html . 2008-01-01 .
  7. Web site: Almost Golden. International Movie Data Base. 2008-05-13. 2008-02-21. https://web.archive.org/web/20080221182125/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112327/. live.
  8. Web site: RON KERSHAW, 44, NEWS EXECUTIVE AT CHANNEL 2 . chicagotribune.com . 4 July 1988 . Chicago Tribune . 3 April 2023 . 2023-04-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230404013507/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1988-07-04-8801120520-story.html . live .
  9. Web site: 2007 Emmy Award Nominations. 2007. National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. 2008-05-13.
  10. Web site: 2005 Award Winners . Society of Professional Journalist-Maryland . 2008-05-13 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110207041127/http://www.spj.org/mdpro/2005award-winners.htm . 2011-02-07 .
  11. Web site: 2006 Emmy Award Nominations . 2006 . National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences . 2008-05-13 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070927185044/http://www.capitalemmys.tv/_pdfs/2006_Emmy_Nominations.pdf . 2007-09-27 .
  12. Web site: NATIONAL TELEVISION ACADEMY PRESENTS. National Television Academy. 2008-05-13. 2008-07-24. https://web.archive.org/web/20080724203501/http://www.emmyonline.org/emmy/docu_27th_winners_b.html. dead.
  13. Web site: 2007 duPont-Columbia Award winners. 2007-02-28. Columbia University School of Journalism. 2008-05-13. 2009-09-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20090907101458/http://www.journalism.columbia.edu/cs/ContentServer/jrn/1175295299883/page/1175295299866/simplepage.htm. live.

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