Wednesday, September 27, 2006
A view of the Hill: Is the CNN Anchor the Future of Broadcast News?`
Source:Somerville Journal In the end, it turns out that Katie Couric - the defection, the build-up, the hype, and the legs - is just another talented person reading the news.Some credit her with investing the news with a bit of personality, but on that front, she’s not alone.
For the past few months, CNN Headline News has been broadcasting "Prime News with Erica Hill," a daily hour-long show of international and national news, noteworthy trend pieces, and a little bit of fluff to soften the edges.
Anchor Erica Hill, a summa cum laude Boston University graduate, performs with a style that may be the future of broadcast news. She doesn’t just read the news. She leans into the camera for emphasis; her eyebrows shoot up and down in either fascination or concern; she reveals a gallery of facial expressions, depending on the subject. She always shows a palpable interest in what she’s talking about, coming across as strictly serious on the straightforward stories, light and effervescent on the goofy ones.
And she defines "telegenic."
Earlier in the year, she came in at number 35 on People Magazine’s annual "100 Most Beautiful People" list.
"I found out about that from my husband’s cousin," she says with a giggle, from her home in Atlanta, which she shares with her lawyer husband David and their dog Jake. "She called me at work. She was freaking out. She said, ’You’re in "People"!’ It was very surreal, and no one knew it was happening. But my husband was pretty excited about it, and I was very flattered.
"I’d rather people see me as an intelligent woman," she adds. "But it’s not bad if I’m attractive."
Hill, 30, never had a plan to be a TV anchor. In fact, there weren’t any career thoughts of the news.
"I think broadcast journalism was my fourth or fifth major," she says of her B.U. days. "I had some writing professors who said I was doing well in writing, why not move into journalism. So I did." MORE
# posted by ATN @ 10:13 PM 
