Jane
Hanson, WNBC anchor and news correspondent since September, 1979,
developed her nose for news very early in life. In an interview with
Networking magazine Hanson explains, "From the time I was a little
girl, about four years old, my Dad would read me the newspapers and
we would talk about what was going on in the world. That made me want
to become a journalist." Much later, at the University of Minnesota,
Hanson, who had been thinking about becoming a magazine writer and
was also doing a lot of acting at the time, heeded her advisor's suggestion
to try television, a relatively new field for women in the early 70's.
She loved the idea of television right away, graduated early with
a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Journalism, and has gone on to win
eight Emmys, the most recent two for her current program, "Jane's
New York," which premiered in January, 2004.
Right
after college, Hanson was offered a job at KSFY-TV in Sioux Falls,
South Dakota, and turned it down as her plan was to "go off and
hang around Europe for a while." Her Aunt Eunice, who had been
staying with Jane and her brothers while her parents were out of town,
overheard her refusing the offer. Says Jane, "Aunt Eunice heard
my whole phone conversation with KSFY and asked if she heard correctly
that I had just turned down a job. I told her 'yes,' and she said,
'just what do you think you're doing?' After I explained my plan to
go to Europe and hang out, she said, "Who do you think is going
to pay for that?' and, of course, I told her my father would. She
said, "I don't think so and either you're calling them back or
I'm calling them back, but one way or another you're taking that job!'"
That
was in 1976 and Hanson, as the first women every hired in the KSFV
news department, "had to do everything." She was a reporter
for the station's 6 and 11 pm newscasts and anchored a daily noon
news show. She also served as the station's reporter for segments
on the "Today" show and hosted a daily interview program.
She recalls, "I stayed there about a year and then went to WMT-TV
in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where I anchored the 6 and 10 pm newscasts."
When Hanson decided it was time to move on, she sent her tape to a
talent scout telling her she wanted to move east. "I was thinking
maybe Schenectady but the recruiter gave my tape to WCBS TV in New
York City and they called me! They were looking for an anchor for
the 11 pm news, a top job in television news in New York City. I,
of course, thought I was perfectly ready for that job and went for
an interview. They took one look at me and decided I was, at age 23,
pretty green! Needless to say I never got that job so I went back
to Iowa."
About
a month later Hanson got a phone call from someone who claimed to
be the news director of WNBC. She assumed somebody was playing a joke
on her and hung up. He called again and she hung up on him a second
time. She remembers, "The third time he called he said, "Before
you hang up write down my number.' Because I had told everyone I wanted
to move to New York, I thought when I dialed I would reach a bunch
of friends laughing on the other end. But when I called and someone
answered, "Ron Kershaw's office,' and I thought, "Oh my
goodness! This is real!'" She began at WNBC by hosting the weekend
news then moved to the morning news. "At first," says Hanson,
"I hosted a fifteen minute program that eventually became two
hours surrounding a show called "NBC News at Sunrise.'"
Today, Hanson is the station's primary anchor for its numerous local
programming efforts and is responsible for the creation and implementation
of an ongoing series of high profile reports to WNBC's various newscasts.
Hanson assumed her current anchor role in July, 2003, after serving
as co-anchor of "Today in New York" since the show's inception
in 1988. Her first co-anchor was Tony Guida followed by Matt Lauer,
Mary Civilla and Maurice DuBois. She has sat on the anchor desk during
many of New York's most definitive news events including the September
11 terrorist attacks. About that day, she remembers, "I was the
first person to go on the air at WNBC that morning. I was on within
two minutes of the first plane hitting the tower and stayed on for
the next eight hours. We were on for eight hours a day for the next
several days after the attack."
A
pioneering woman in TV broadcasting, Hanson received four Emmys for
Outstanding Morning News Program for "Today in New York,"
a 1996 Emmy for Outstanding Health/Science Programming for a series
of reports on "Surviving Breast Cancer" and an Emmy for
outstanding spot news coverage. Her very successful year and a half
old, "Jane's New York," has already garnered two more Emmys
for Hanson. One was for a story called, "Underground New York,"
about the city below the city, and the second was a composite for
being the host of a show that won an Emmy. In 1995, the National Mother's
Day Committee named Hanson an "Outstanding Mother of the Year,"
an honor she shared with then First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and
Carolyn McCarthy (Networking magazine May, 1995). She was named "Correspondent
of the Year" by New York's Police Detectives and received a similar
honor from New York's Firefighters for her courage in covering fires.
When asked about the prospects for women entering broadcasting today,
Hanson said she sees a bright future. She remarked, "It's the
greatest job in the world. Interns get college credit and a wonderful
way to network. Today, everyone has a television set and there are
so many channels now. It used to be harder because there were just
a few networks and no cable." "I come from a town of 1,800
people in rural Minnesota so television has given me the most incredible
career." She added, "I have seen and learned so much. I
have had an ability to consistently have a new adventure almost every
day of my life. I get to see history being made before my eyes and
meet the most interesting people on the planet. I covered the Olympics
last summer and spent a month in Greece Ü that was pretty cool."
By contrast, Hanson noted that she has had to witness some of the
most horrendous things that happen in a huge and complex city like
New York. She recommends that anyone contemplating a career in television
develop a thick skin. She explains, "People will say things to
you they would not say to their own mother. I've had people tell me
they hate my hair color and the way I'm wearing it. They've told me
my dress was ugly and asked why I have such a funny laugh!" She
views the current television news business as one in a state of change.
Networks are exploring new and different ways to provide in depth
reporting beyond the headlines. With the diversity of cable channels
and people getting their news on the Internet, the leading news outfits
are shifting focus and experimenting. They may introduce their news
correspondents at the top of the hour letting viewers know the anchor
is surrounded by a team. They may put more emphasis on original reporting
and unique analysis. Hanson feels the development of "a lot more
programming" is the future of the medium. For her own show, "Jane's
New York," which currently airs several Saturdays a month at
7 pm, she takes a long look at various issues in New York's five boroughs.
The renaissance of the waterfront, the city's canine population, Manhattan
mansions, gay life and how it has changed in the last two decades,
comedy, Broadway and holiday windows have all been subjects for "Jane's
New York." She plans to do something in the Hamptons for a future
program. "I feel very blessed to have the opportunity to try
something new. We've had great feedback: people love the show,"
says Hanson. "It's fun, a great pleasure. I feel like I'm getting
smarter which is really interesting. Maybe it's because I don't have
to get up at 3 am any more as I did for a very long time!" She
wants to broaden the base and make "Jane's New York" grow
adding, "I would love to make it a national show, of course,
we might have to change the title!" Hanson believes in giving
back. She has been the recipient of the March of Dimes Media Services
Award for her many contributions to the organization. For the past
five years, she has served as the March of Dimes Walk-America chairman,
and she is the honorary chair in New York for the Susan B. Komen Foundation's
annual "Race for the Cure" fundraiser. She participates
in the Cartier Grand Slam tennis tournament for the American Cancer
Society. She serves on the board of directors of the Westhampton Beach
Performing Arts Center and has done work for East End Hospice and
the American Heart Association. She is on the board of directors of
Graham Windham, the oldest agency in New York City that gives aid
to tri-state area families and children. In addition, she serves on
the board of Phipps House, an organization that helps provide housing
to low-income families. Hanson has also been an adjunct professor
at Stern College. In her free time, Hanson enjoys sports - tennis,
golf, swimming, roller blading and biking. She is married, has one
child, and lives in Manhattan and spends weekends on eastern Long
Island.
