:: KETC Channel 9 ::

East Village Opera Company, an hour-long concert special produced in high-definition, won an Emmy for editor Bill Nahlik in the Editor-Program/Program Feature category.

The Mid-America Chapter of NATAS includes all of Missouri and Arkansas, southern Illinois, and part of Iowa and Louisiana. With its six Emmys, KETC tied for the fourth-highest number of wins with WDAF, the Fox affiliate in Kansas City. Only St. Louis commercial stations KSDK (NBC), KMOV (CBS) and KTVI (Fox) won more awards.

KETC/Channel 9 Earns Three Emmy Awards

Channel 9's Living St. Louis and St. Louis Walk of Fame Volume II Are Big Winners

Nov. 2, 2005—KETC/Channel 9, St. Louis' public television station, earned three Emmy Awards from the Mid-America Chapter of the National Television Academy, it was announced at ceremonies in St. Louis on Saturday, October 29.

The magazine series Living St. Louis, which won two Emmys last year in its first season, again won two awards. The program's executive producer Patrick Murphy won in the Program Feature Cultural/Historical category for his piece on Principia College. Producer Margie Newman won in the Program Feature Arts/Performing Arts category for her profile of Italy-based St. Louis gospel singer Sybil Smoot.

St. Louis Walk of Fame Volume II won in the Special category. The hour-long documentary looks at the stories of people whose names are on University City's Walk of Fame, and features segments produced by Anne-Marie Berger, Ruth Ezell, Jim Kirchherr, Patrick Murphy and Margie Newman.

"I'm proud that this small but dedicated staff of producers can tell the stories of the region so well. It's gratifying that the Academy recognizes our efforts," said Vice President of Production Patrick Murphy.

KETC/Channel 9 Earns Four Emmy Awards
New Series Living St. Louis Wins Two; Channel 9 Documentaries Made in USA: The East St. Louis Story and A Mission Close to Home Each Win One

St. Louis — October 20, 2004 — KETC/Channel 9, St. Louis’ public television station, earned four Emmy Awards from the Mid-America Chapter of the National Television Academy, it was announced at ceremonies in St. Louis on Saturday, October 16.

The big winner for the station was Living St. Louis, a magazine series that debuted in January 2004. Living St. Louis won two awards, for best informational series and for best editorial/commentary. KETC program producers Anne-Marie Berger, Ruth Ezell, Jim Kirchherr and Patrick Murphy shared the award in the Informational category. Guest producer Donn Johnson won for his viewpoint piece about desegregation in the Editorial/Commentary category.

The documentary Made in USA: The East St. Louis Story, about the little-known history of St. Louis’ Illinois neighbor, won an Emmy for producer Jim Kirchherr in the Writing-Program category. Another documentary, A Mission Close to Home, exploring the role nearby Scott Air Force Base plays in national defense, won an Emmy for producer Bob Zahnweh in the category Director (Pre-Produced).

“We are thrilled by these honors,” said KETC Executive Producer Patrick Murphy. “For Living St. Louis, in its freshman year, to already earn recognition from other television professionals is extremely gratifying. We’ve been focused for months on producing each week’s shows, so these Emmy Awards give us a chance to take a breath, review what we’ve accomplished and know that we’re definitely on the right track.”

“All of these Emmy Awards are a victory for the thousands of metropolitan St. Louis viewers who turn to Channel 9 every day for quality, local programs,” said KETC President and CEO James Baum. “Our primary commitment is to serve our community with relevant, educational and engaging productions. Winning four Emmys reinforces that we are judicious keepers of the trust viewers place in us to provide excellent local programming.”

KETC Launches Major, Local Nightly Magazine Series on January 5
Living St. Louis Features the People, Places and Cultural Trends That Make the St. Louis Area Thrive

At first glance, a glass-blowing company, the St. Louis Fire Department and University City entrepreneur Joe Edwards have nothing in common. But to Channel 9 producers, all three are perfect subjects to be featured in KETC's nightly magazine series Living St. Louis.

Bursting with energy and vitality, Living St. Louis debuted January 5. It is designed to highlight the diverse people, places and cultures that make metropolitan St. Louis an interesting and thriving area. The series is broadcast on Channel 9 Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. To provide a local presence five nights a week, Channel 9's Donnybrook continues to occupy the 7:00 p.m. Thursday timeslot, while Stl Biz is cobranded with and included under the Living St. Louis umbrella.

Each 30-minute Living St. Louis episode consists of four to five 5-minute stories representing a wide range of topics from different areas in the region. Segments in one episode, for example, may originate from St. Charles, downtown St. Louis and Belleville, and draw from subjects such as the arts; regional history; neighborhoods; local innovations in medicine, business and technology; people making a difference; non-profit institutions and education. Viewers may turn to the Living St. Louis Web page to find out more information on the subjects explored, people profiled and places visited.

"With Living St. Louis, we are creating a new vision for what local programming can achieve," says KETC President and CEO James Baum. "We are bringing to reality a television concept that enriches partnerships in the community and that helps the public become more engaged in the life of St. Louis."

"The tone of Living St. Louis is upbeat, positive and inspiring," says executive producer Patrick Murphy. "The primary criteria for determining the content of the show is driven by the question, What is happening in St. Louis that is fresh and interesting?" He adds, "We will show our viewers how the community is growing, changing, learning and becoming a better place to live."

Veteran Channel 9 talent Jim Kirchherr serves as Living St. Louis host and also produces segments for the show. Other contributors include Ruth Ezell, former KSDK correspondent and current reporter for KMOX radio; KETC producer and director Anne-Marie Berger; and Jennifer Roller, producer of KETC's Friday night series Stl Biz.

The broadcast of Living St. Louis is funded by the Jordan Foundation and members of KETC/Channel 9.

For the past 17 years, Senior and Executive Producer of Living St. Louis Jim Kirchherr has played an integral role in producing award-winning shows and feature stories for Channel 9.

After graduating from the University of Illinois with a Communications degree, Jim became a William Benton Fellow in Broadcast Journalism at the University of Chicago. From there, he began his career in radio before joining the KTVI news team in St. Louis. From 1987-1991, he was the Senior news editor for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Munich, Germany, and has been at KETC ever since.

Some of his proudest works include five successful seasons of Living St. Louis and the Decades series. His contributions at KETC have earned Jim dozens of honors and awards including 11 Midwest Emmy Awards, several Aurora and Telly Awards, including a Platinum “Best of Show,” and the 2007 Faherty History Award from the Historical Society of St. Louis County. He is also a member of the Board of governors for the Mid-America Chapter of the Emmys—having served two terms as president.

Jim has spent the past 30 years in the St. Louis community and resides in University City with his wife and two daughters. When he isn’t researching and reporting, you’ll find him tickling the ivories and cycling about town.

KETC Vice President of Production Patrick Murphy has been part of the St. Louis broadcast community for more than 30 years—airing on such radio stations as KWMU, KSLQ, KYKY, KGLD and KADI. Widely known as the "voice" of Channel 9 since 1981, Patrick has a rich background as a freelance on-camera and voice talent, as well as an independent producer.

Patrick’s most notable KETC productions include The Katy: Stories of the Trail, American Tower, Because of You, Monumental Reflections and five seasons of Living St. Louis. He has been honored for his outstanding work in television with four Emmys, two Auroras, numerous Tellys and is an honorary member of St. Louis chapter American Institute of Architects.

After earning his B.A. from Washington University, Patrick spent a semester abroad at the University of Tuebingen in Germany. He then went on to earn his M.A. from Webster University where he worked as an adjunct professor of media. And for the past 10 years, he has served as emcee and moderator of the Maryville St. Louis Speakers' Series at Powell Hall.

In addition to producing award-winning stories for Living St. Louis, Ruth Ezell has also served as host for Channel 9 specials including No Sweet Home, Aging Out of Foster Care, Crisis in Education, Closing The Achievement Gap and the four-part series Remaking Missouri Medicine.

For the past five years, Ruth was known to radio audiences as a co-host of Total Information AM on KMOX. Over the course of her career, she has worked at several radio and television stations in the Midwest as a reporter, producer and anchor—most recently at St. Louis’ KSDK for 10 years before joining KETC. She is a four-time Mid-America Emmy award winner and a six-time winner of the Excellence in Communications Awards sponsored by the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists.

Ruth studied liberal arts at Olivet College in Michigan and the University College of Washington University. When she’s not working on Channel 9 projects, Ruth enjoys live musical performances, theatre and reading—particularly novels and biographies.

As both a producer and director, Anne-Marie Berger has helped create some of KETC's most popular programs, including the national cooking show Breaking Bread With Father Dominic, Stl Biz, Home Front St. Louis; and In the Loop. Her favorite Living St. Louis shows are ones that have the ability to inspire others such as Stray Rescue, Katherine Dunham and Rebuilding Together.

Anne-Marie began her career at WYES-TV, a PBS affiliate station in New Orleans. Since coming to KETC in 2000, she has received six regional Emmy awards, two Aurora Awards, one Telly, and two awards from the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists.

She currently serves as the Awards Chair for the Mid-America Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (EMMY) and teaches a communications class at the St. Louis Community College in Florissant Valley. Anne-Marie founded the James Patrick Giroir Fund, a fundraising organization committed to raising money for families of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, and is the former fundraising co-chair of the Boys Hope Girls Hope Junior Board.

A St. Louis native, she attended St. Joseph’s Academy and graduated with her B.A. from Loyola University in New Orleans. She went on to earn a master’s degree in Communications from Webster University and now resides in Maplewood.