Connect with us
Barrett News Media Summit 2024

News Radio

KNX Morning Anchor Dick Helton Retiring

In addition to serving as morning co-anchor on KNX, Helton also works as the station’s Senior Political Correspondent.

Barrett News Media

Published

on

After 24 years with all-news KNX in Los Angeles, Dick Helton has announced his retirement.

Helton joined KNX in 1998 after spending 29 years at WBBM in Chicago. He spent 13 years hosting afternoons at the Chicago all-news station before joining its sister station in Los Angeles.

In addition to serving as morning co-anchor on KNX, Helton also works as the station’s Senior Political Correspondent.

Helton’s final day on air will be Friday, with co-anchor Vicky Moore asking for comments and audio she can use on air to help honor her teammate.

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading
29 Comments

29 Comments

  1. Frances Davies

    October 13, 2022 at 7:25 pm

    I listened to Dick when I lived in Chicago on WBBM in the 80s

  2. Frances Davies

    October 13, 2022 at 7:25 pm

    I listened to Dick when I lived in Chicago on WBBM in the 80s

  3. John R Pavone

    October 14, 2022 at 12:21 am

    I would tune into Dick more for his delightful rapport with Vicky and Jennifer than the news content.

    For me, his warmth and integrity came across the airwaves to help set the tone for the day ahead and somehow made the chaos of the world more manageable.

  4. Torben Pedersen

    October 14, 2022 at 8:40 am

    Thank you, Dick … for joining me on my daily drive to work … for the last 24 years … It has been a pleasure listening to you … A the best yo you with your retirement …

  5. Torben Pedersen

    October 14, 2022 at 8:40 am

    Thank you, Dick … for joining me on my daily drive to work … for the last 24 years … It has been a pleasure listening to you … A the best yo you with your retirement …

  6. Judge Robert Rassp

    October 14, 2022 at 10:05 am

    Your journalistic style and informative voice brought me to work for a long commute every weekday morning for the last 24 years.

  7. Judge Robert Rassp

    October 14, 2022 at 10:05 am

    Your journalistic style and informative voice brought me to work for a long commute every weekday morning for the last 24 years.

  8. Robert Barajas

    October 14, 2022 at 10:48 am

    Been nice listening to you dick I listen the early morning news Your Voice Sounds like a rough cowboy has that cowboy voice sounds real good on the radio but your visual face looks humble and gentle LOL LOL okay dick make sure you start off with a nice vacation on your retirement many blessings to you and your family

  9. Robert Barajas

    October 14, 2022 at 10:48 am

    Been nice listening to you dick I listen the early morning news Your Voice Sounds like a rough cowboy has that cowboy voice sounds real good on the radio but your visual face looks humble and gentle LOL LOL okay dick make sure you start off with a nice vacation on your retirement many blessings to you and your family

  10. Harrison

    October 14, 2022 at 11:13 am

    Never Seen the Face behind the Pleaseing voice Until today, Your voice matches your look, Enjoy retirement, Going to miss you

  11. Harrison

    October 14, 2022 at 11:13 am

    Never Seen the Face behind the Pleaseing voice Until today, Your voice matches your look, Enjoy retirement, Going to miss you

  12. Francisco

    October 14, 2022 at 11:25 am

    I will miss you Sr

  13. Francisco

    October 14, 2022 at 11:25 am

    I will miss you Sr

  14. June sheets

    October 14, 2022 at 11:39 am

    Will miss hearing your voice but very happy for you!!

  15. June sheets

    October 14, 2022 at 11:39 am

    Will miss hearing your voice but very happy for you!!

  16. Jim

    October 14, 2022 at 12:33 pm

    He’s one of those voices that are part of your life. Radio will not be the same without you. Enjoy your retirement.

  17. Jim

    October 14, 2022 at 12:33 pm

    He’s one of those voices that are part of your life. Radio will not be the same without you. Enjoy your retirement.

  18. Olga

    October 14, 2022 at 12:56 pm

    Dick Helton, congratulations on your retirement!!
    I am a native Angelino and have listened to you since your hire date on
    KNX NEWS 1070 AM.
    I will miss your professional delivery and detailed information of our news and the kindness in your voice.
    You hold our hand as we listen, while you help us comprehend, and you ease the anxiety of our constant changing and challenging times.
    And with the positive news, you bring charm and wit.

  19. Olga

    October 14, 2022 at 12:56 pm

    Dick Helton, congratulations on your retirement!!
    I am a native Angelino and have listened to you since your hire date on
    KNX NEWS 1070 AM.
    I will miss your professional delivery and detailed information of our news and the kindness in your voice.
    You hold our hand as we listen, while you help us comprehend, and you ease the anxiety of our constant changing and challenging times.
    And with the positive news, you bring charm and wit.

  20. Scheryl

    October 14, 2022 at 1:06 pm

    Driving Ive had to pull over….could not hold back the tears…. What will we do now. All the Best #DickHelton

  21. Scheryl

    October 14, 2022 at 1:06 pm

    Driving Ive had to pull over….could not hold back the tears…. What will we do now. All the Best #DickHelton

  22. Charlie

    October 14, 2022 at 1:08 pm

    Thank you Mr Belton for all holding politician accountable during your interview with them.

  23. Charlie

    October 14, 2022 at 1:08 pm

    Thank you Mr Belton for all holding politician accountable during your interview with them.

  24. Neda

    October 14, 2022 at 1:16 pm

    I listened to you every morning driving to work and today I couldn’t stop my tears. You will be missed. ❤️

  25. Neda

    October 14, 2022 at 1:16 pm

    I listened to you every morning driving to work and today I couldn’t stop my tears. You will be missed. ❤️

  26. Carol C.

    October 14, 2022 at 2:06 pm

    I’ll miss waking up with you in the morning. Your mellifluous voice and vast wealth of knowledge were a great start to my mornings.

    I know you will love being retired – especially being able to sleep in every morning. I wish you safe and happy travels and a long and joyous retirement.

  27. Carol C.

    October 14, 2022 at 2:06 pm

    I’ll miss waking up with you in the morning. Your mellifluous voice and vast wealth of knowledge were a great start to my mornings.

    I know you will love being retired – especially being able to sleep in every morning. I wish you safe and happy travels and a long and joyous retirement.

  28. Sally H

    October 14, 2022 at 7:30 pm

    It has been my pleasure listening to you. I will miss not waking up to your voice and enlightenments on current news! Thank you for your contributions.

  29. Sally H

    October 14, 2022 at 7:30 pm

    It has been my pleasure listening to you. I will miss not waking up to your voice and enlightenments on current news! Thank you for your contributions.

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

News Radio

WBT News Director Mark Garrison Defends Conduct During Interview with Karine Jean-Pierre

“To quote Karine, I’m offended that she would suggest that. We don’t add sound effects to news stories.”

Barrett News Media

Published

on

A photo of the WBT logo

WBT News Director Mark Garrison has been in the spotlight for his recent interview with White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. He’s now defending his actions after pushback from the White House.

Garrison conducted a phone interview with Jean-Pierre ahead of President Biden’s visit to North Carolina. During the interview, he asked the Press Secretary if the President has dementia, stating the question was prompted by those who heard he would be speaking with Jean-Pierre.

In her response, she stated “I can’t even believe you’re asking me this question. It is incredibly insulting,” before asking Garrison for his next question. Later in the interview, she said “And with that, Mark, thank you so much. Have an amazing, amazing day,” and ended the call.

The White House alleges that WBT was given seven minutes to speak with Jean-Pierre, and the time was up. It also claims that the station edited in a dial tone for dramatic effect, arguing that its phones do not have dial tones when a call is ended.

Mark Garrison appeared on The Ingraham Angle on Fox News Wednesday to discuss the matter, and defended his actions.

“I knew — as you know, doing interviews through the years — you’re going to get a lot of talking points,” Garrison told Ingraham. “So I thought if I can just ask a couple of questions, maybe we’d make a little news, maybe get a sound bite out of her. I just decided to ask her about all the concern here in North Carolina. Even 45% of Democrats are concerned about Biden’s mental state, so I thought ‘Ok, I brought that up to her.’ She somewhat dismissed that. And then I just said, ‘Ok, well, does he have dementia?’ And I was surprised that she was so offended.”

Garrison added that Jean-Pierre sidestepped the question for a specific reason.

“What she did was take us down a bumpy dirt road, because she went on to say, ‘Well, every year, the White House physician examines the president and puts out a detailed report.’ Well, I went back and looked at all of those detail reports. It talks about his heartburn, it talks about his limp, it talks about his heart, it talks about his stomach, but there’s nothing in those reports about his mental capacity.”

When asked if he altered the audio to add a dial tone for dramatic effect, the WBT anchor shared his displeasure with the insinuation.

“To quote Karine, I’m offended that she would suggest that. We don’t add sound effects to news stories. When she hit the button to disconnect, we got a dial tone. We didn’t add any drama to it.”

He concluded by stating the he aired the unedited interview, despite what the White House claimed.

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

News Radio

Tim Conway Jr.: Social Media Quickens the News Cycle for Stories Like the Baltimore Bridge

“A good buddy of mine, he sent me that literally about 40 minutes after it happened. The video and the story. That’s crazy.”

Barrett News Media

Published

on

A photo of Tim Conway Jr. and the KFI AM-640 logo
(Photo: KFI AM-640)

Social media video of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsing in the Baltimore harbor made the rounds Tuesday morning. KFI AM-640 host Tim Conway Jr. believes the way we learned about the tragedy shapes the coverage surrounding it.

While discussing the happenings with KFI reporter Steve Gregory, who has a long history of covering breaking news events, Conway Jr. noted that not only did social media help confirm the validity of the story, but seeing the images spread so quickly shined a spotlight on how fast the news cycle moves now.

“What a great advantage of having Twitter and Facebook and Instagram and then TikTok, all these social media is when something like that happens you know, because it happens so late we would have not ever heard about it or seen anything until the morning news,” said Conway Jr.

“But now with social media you instantly know. A good buddy of mine, he sent me that literally about 40 minutes after it happened. The video and the story. That’s crazy.”

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading

News Radio

Michael Riedel: Once You Start Talking About People’s Personal Lives, There’s No Going Back

“If you go down that path, then you’re headed towards National Enquirer territory and as a journalist, you can never really come back from that.”

Barrett News Media

Published

on

A photo of Michael Riedel and the 710 WOR logo
(Photo: 710 WOR)

710 WOR morning host Michael Riedel got spent years working as a Broadway reporter and columnist before shifting to the New York news/talker. He has one guiding principle for the radio show that he has kept from his writing days.

Riedel was discussing his previous role at the New York Post with colleague Mark Simone on his midday program and said there are just some things you shouldn’t talk about.

“I got all the backstage stories when I was writing the column about Broadway for the New York Post. You know, celebrities, the leading lady fighting with the producer, lawsuits,” Riedel shared. “But I always drew the line at people’s private lives. Because I thought if you go down that path, then you’re headed towards National Enquirer territory and as a journalist, you can never really come back from that.

“If somebody filed a sexual harassment suit against somebody, I covered those. That’s fine. I mean, as soon as a suit is filed, it’s a matter of public record. I could get into it, but I never got into who’s sleeping with whom and who’s doing this thing. Not to say I didn’t know, and I loved hearing about it, but I drew the line at people’s personal lives when I wrote about them.”

Simone joked that he admired Riedel’s ability to converse with celebrities and know “exactly what that guy would be fascinated by.”

Subscribe To The BNM Rundown

The Top 8 News Media Stories of the Day, sent directly to your inbox every afternoon!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Advertisement
Advertisement

Upcoming Events

BNM Writers

Copyright © 2024 Barrett Media.