Local news anchor Calvin Hughes discusses reporting, Haiti, racism

By Jeffrey Pierre / FIUSM Staff

Calvin Hughes, a news anchor for WPLG Local 10, climbed his way up the journalistic ladder from small-town Missouri street reporter to Emmy Award-winning news anchor.

Hughes was born in Cleveland and lived in East St. Louis, Ill., for several years—humble beginnings, according to Hughes, that he calls a mixture of Allapattah, Overtown and Liberty City.

At 25 years old, after studying at the University of Missouri Columbia, Hughes was the first to break the Michael Irvin arrest news story. In March 1996, Irvin, who was a star wide-receiver for the Dallas Cowboys, was arrested on charges of cocaine possession at a hotel party celebrating his 30th birthday.

Hughes shared these stories with journalism students on Monday, Nov. 17, an event hosted by the Association of Black Journalists.

“I don’t normally come to these things with a canned speech,” Hughes said, opening the floor for discussion. ABJ brought Hughes to the University not only for his success as a journalist, but his success as a black reporter turned news anchor. “It’s nothing more than overcoming self-doubt and fear,” he said.

Jasmine Sias Richardson, a senior broadcasting major and president of ABJ says, today, newsrooms lack diversity, which directly affects the stories reported. “Since he’s been here, he’s been pretty invested in reporting in multicultural communities,” she said.

After working at KYW-TV, the CBS station in Philadelphia, where he worked since November, 2003, Hughes moved to Miami and channel 10 three years later. Previously, Hughes worked in Atlanta, Dallas, Lexington, Ky, and Evansville, In.

 

In 2011, Hughes received praise for his reporting on the earthquake in Haiti. The Miami New Times awarded him Best TV News Anchor, saying, “Reporters’ platitudes and smiling sign-offs often hide the intransigence of poverty and blight. [Hughes’] reporting reveals those problems without dismissing them.”

Looking back, Hughes calls his experience in Haiti “the worst story I ever had to cover.” After the 2010 earthquake, the country took major hits in infrastructure. Support from law enforcement  and healthcare providers was non-existent and evident on the streets.

“There’s nothing that prepares you for seeing dead bodies everywhere,” he said.

After his stories detailing his triumphs as a reporter, he took questions. One student asked if racism played a role during his career.

Hughes stated that it did, though added that he chose not to focus on it.

“The best way to fight racism is through excellence,” he said, quoting something Oprah Winfrey told him once in a conversation.”