Leslie Ray Griffith (January 1, 1956 – August 10, 2022) was an American writer and journalist. She worked for 22 years at KTVU in the San Francisco Bay Area as a reporter and as a news anchor.
Early life
Born in Tomball, Texas, Griffith worked her way through college as a single mother, working as a cleaner. [1]
Career
She began her career in the newspaper business as a journalist for the Associated Press and the Denver Post. Her first television jobs were in Grand Junction, Colorado, and in the Monterey-Salinas market of California. In 1986 she became a weekend reporter and anchor at KTVU in Oakland, California; in March 1996 she became co-anchor of the Ten O'Clock News with Dennis Richmond. [2] [3] For nine years she was sole anchor of the weekend news; on her 25th birthday, she was in Moscow reporting on the Cold War. She resigned from the station in 2006, after 22 years. [3] [4]
She continued to write for news publications, including The Huffington Post [5] and the San Francisco Chronicle [6] [7]
For many years, she was concerned with the problem of tuberculosis in circus elephants. [6] She published an article on the issue in 2007 [8] and later wrote and directed the award-winning documentary, When Giants Fall. [9]
In 2005, she established the Leslie R. Griffith Woman of Courage Scholarship to help young women. [1]
She had a small part as a TV anchor in the 1999 film True Crime. [10]
Personal life and death
Griffith and her first husband divorced after two years of marriage. [1] She had two daughters and a son. She died on August 10, 2022, in Lake Chapala, Mexico, from the effects Lyme disease, which she had contracted in 2015; she moved to Mexico in 2016. [2] [6]
Awards
- Casey Award for "Candy Kids" with Roland De Wolk at KTVU, 1998. [11]
- Emmy for Election Night coverage with KTVU News, 2001. [12]
- Emmy for "My 20th Century: The Battle for California" for KTVU, 2001. [13]
- Emmy for On Camera News Anchor, 2002. [14]
- Emmy for "Lost Children of Romania" with KTVU, 2003. [15]
- Genesis Award for KTVU's Ten O'Clock News "Circus Elephants" feature on the treatment of circus elephants at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, 2004. [16]
- APTRA Award for Best Anchor, 2005. [17]
References
- ^ a b c Alex Horvath, "Community: Redwood High program helps teenage moms / KTVU news anchor Leslie Griffith establishes Women of Courage Scholarship to foster success", SFGate (San Francisco Chronicle), June 24, 2005.
- ^ a b Graff, Amy (August 11, 2022). "KTVU anchor Leslie Griffith dies 'from the effects of Lyme Disease'". SFGate. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
- ^ a b Chuck Barney (November 17, 2006). "Leslie Griffith resigns at KTVU". East Bay Times.
- ^ Andrea Lampros, "Broadcast Blues: Former KTVU anchor Leslie Griffith says if television news is in trouble, so are we",The Monthly, November 2008.
- ^ The Huffington Post: Leslie Griffith
- ^ a b c "Longtime KTVU anchor and reporter Leslie Griffith dies". KTVU. August 10, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
- ^ "Notables at the Chronicle", Columbia Journalism Review
- ^ Leslie Griffith, "The Elephant in the Room", Truthout.org.
- ^ When Giants Fall, Internet Movie Database.
- ^ Full cast, True Crime, Internet Movie Database
- ^ 1998 Casey Award Archived December 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine "Candy Kids" (Search for "TV: Short Form" and "1998")
- ^ 2001 Emmy – ON CAMERA NEWS – ANCHORS Archived September 26, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Election Night News KTVU
- ^ 2001 Emmy – CULTURAL AFFAIRS PROGRAM Archived September 26, 2010, at the Wayback Machine My 20th Century: The Battle for California with Leslie Donaldson, Producer; Leslie Griffith, Anchor; Faith Fancher, Diane Guerrazzi, Bob MacKenzie, Reporters; Steve Shilsky, Editor
- ^ 2002 Emmy ON CAMERA NEWS – ANCHORS[ permanent dead link]
- ^ 2003 Emmy – SERIOUS NEWS FEATURE-SERIES[ permanent dead link] Lost Children of Romania KTVU
- ^ Diablo Magazine report on Genesis winners
- ^ 2005 APTRA – BEST ANCHOR, OR ANCHOR TEAM Archived April 22, 2010, at the Wayback Machine