Chris Vanocur's Blog

VANOCUR BACKROOM BLOG/ A QUARTER CENTURY & COUNTING

cvanocur — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 19:07:00 GMT

25 YEARS AND COUNTING !!!

August, 1982.

That's when I began covering Utah.

And this week I'm celebrating my 25th anniversary.

As my good friend, Nicea DeGering once said, "Chris, it's either your destiny or

density to be here so long."

In honor of this milestone, ABC 4 News will be airing a special two hour

"On the Record."

It will run Sunday, August 12th, from 11 am to 1pm.

The first hour will be the Vanocur political Group.

Among many issues, the Group will talk about the Salt Lake mayor's race

and Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.

As for the second hour...

In honor of this 25th anniversary, we will air what we're calling a

"Greatest Hits" show. This will include some of the more memorable stories

and a few that maybe I would like to forget.

Among others, will be the first story I did on my family and the Holocaust.

Also, naturally, there will be some political pieces - some funny, some not.

And, of course, there will be the spoof on the Paris Hilton hamburger commerical,

plus the emmy nominated "Christmas Tree Story" and, finally, me yelling at

turkeys.

So, if you get a chance, tune in Sunday, August 12th, from 11 am to 1 pm.

As the Grateful Dead sang, "What a long, strange trip it's been."

Until my next blog, I will be in the political backroom.

VANOCUR BLOG/THE PEOPLE YOU DON'T SEE

cvanocur — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 21:22:00 GMT

June 25, 2007.

Today was a bad day.

A brave Corrections officer was killed in the line of duty, others were injured and a lot of folks were just plain scared.

But some good people also did some good things.

Eric Fullerton, a scrappy former paratrooper somehow managed to wrestle away a gun from an escaped convict.

Then, with genuine modesty, he told us he wasn't a hero.

But. of course, we beg to differ.

And then - on a smaller but still important scale - there are some other people who did some good things at ABC 4.

These are people you don't always see but ones who should be recognized.

For starters, there is Steve our morning editor.

When all heck started breaking loose, Steve grabbed one of our smaller production cameras and dashed to Arby's.

Because of his fast action and thinking, we were able to get a shot of the suspect being led out of the restaurant.

Steve also got dramatic video of a man wounded in the neck and the head.

Meanwhile, one of veteran photographers, Dennis Kurumada, hung around the crime scene for several hours after all the action ended.

And because of that, he was able to snag an interview with Eric Fullerton, the hero who wrestled the gun away from Curtis Allgier.

Thanks to people like Dennis, Steve and many others, we are able to better share a terrible tragedy with viewers, a story we wish we didn't have to tell.

VANOCUR'S BACKROOM BLOG/GOOD THINGS UTAH

cvanocur — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 15:57:00 GMT

Here's a little known fact.

My desk is located in the middle/back of the ABC 4 Newsroom.

And it's happens to be situated right in the middle of the Good Things Utah work area.

Good Things Utah is, of course, our wildly popular ten am show.

Now, my seating assignment has several advantages.

Chief among them, I - occasionally - get some of the leftover food and sweets from the show.

I also get regular updates about the latest gossip on things like the Bachelor and American Idol.

Plus, Nicea and Reagan model their latest fashion finds.

But there is one mild disadvantage.

They pick on me.

Endlessly.

Relentlessly.

With great enjoyment (on their part).

This includes the hostesses, the producers, practically everyone (female) on the show picks on me.

There's the time they made me cook, the time they made me dance and the time they made me host (on-air) the maternity fashion show.

I'm not kidding about that last one.

And then there's the teasing off camera.

About what I am wearing, about who I am dating, about who I am not dating.

They have even made me an honorary "chick."

I truly believe that it is very important for males to have strong independent females in their lives.

Little did I realize I would be blessed with so many.

All at once.

And so close.

Help! :)

Until the next BLOG, I'll be in the Political (and "chick") Backroom.

VANOCUR'S BACKROOM BLOG/CASTING THE FIRST STONE

cvanocur — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 21:35:00 GMT

First it was Giuliani's campaign.

Now, it's Brownback's.

Both campaigns recently leaked information about Mitt Romney and his LDS religion.

From Giuliani's staff came the interesting article by my good friend Thomas Burr about the LDS legend of a presidential rescuer arriving on a white horse.

Now, a Brownback aide has been reprimanded for sending an email raising questions about Romney's and the Church's beliefs.

One might have been a mistake.

But two?

When I read about this latest Brownback incident I asked myself, "Is this religious bigotry?"

After all, both episodes seem to be cases of candidates using the religion of another for their own political gain.

I also couldn't help but wonder what the outcry would be if other candidates did this about different religions?

What would be the reaction then?

And would other candidates even be trying this if the religion in question wasn't Mormonism?

All of this reminded me of two things:

1) Romney's faith has been, is and will be an issue in this campaign.

2) He must be scaring the other campaigns because it seems we're seeing and hearing more of this.

While I am not LDS, nor a great biblical scholar, writing and thinking about this called to mind the words of John 8:7 - He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone.

In this instance, what these words say to me is all the candidates - R's and D's - could spend the rest of the campaign slinging mud.

However, I can't help but wonder; aren't there more important issues to talk about and deal with?

Until the next BLOG, I'll be in the political backroom.

VANOCUR'S BACKROOM BLOG/WORLD'S SHORTEST BLOG

cvanocur — Sat, 16 Jun 2007 00:04:00 GMT

Have a great weekend!

VANOCUR Backroom Blog/ Luddites Unite!

cvanocur — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 21:36:00 GMT

Ok.

Don't laugh.

But the truth is...I haven't had a new home computer since 1998.

Yup, 1998.

Stop laughing.

And what's worse...it's a dial-up.

So, very reluctantly, I am now being dragged kicking and screaming into the 17th century.

Yes, I've made the decision to buy a new computer!

And that's where things get really tricky.

What kind to get?

I am sort of leaning towards an Apple since that is what we use here at ABC 4 - at least some of the time.

But even if I go Apple, do I get a laptop or a bigger desktop for my study at home?

It's what is sometimes called "the tyranny of choices."

Anyone have any suggestions?

THEN...when I have a new computer, my high tech friends tell me I will have to set-up my own website and then a MySpace page and Facebook and etc.

Oy!

My dad, who is nearly 80, disengeniously calls himself a Luddite which, broadly, is someone who is highly suspicous of new technology.

But the truth is dad has a new Apple desktop and has gotten pretty good at surfing the web.

How do you think I get a lot of my story ideas :) He sends them to me.

So who knows?

Maybe I will end up with the same type of computer that dad has.

After all, I've heard it suggested that the Apple hasn't fallen far from the tree.

Until the next BLOG, I will be in the political backroom.

VANOCUR BACKROOM BLOG/THE POLITICAL LIFE

cvanocur — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 16:52:00 GMT

Everything in life is political.

My dad would often remind me of this, especially before I started covering politics full time nearly 20 years ago.

When I asked him how he knew this, he told me he had read it in a George Orwell essay.

Now, initially, I was suspicious.

How could everything in life be political?

But when I asked dad if really EVERYTHING was political, he said yes.

"Even love and marriage?" I asked.

"Especially that," he answered.

Dad also taught me that politics provides a great education and insight into the human character and the human arena.

When I asked him what he meant, he said that if you study politics for awhile it will teach about both the best and worst in human character - especially about what motivates people.

It took me a few years of actually covering and observing politics but, of course, dad and George Orewell were right.

I am not sure exactly why all this came to mind today.

Maybe it's just the rain or the politcal season or Father's Day approaching.

Regardless, whenever I cover politics, I think about life, about motivation, about George Orwell and, yes, about dad.

Until the next BLOG, I will be in the political backroom.

VANOCUR'S BACKROOM BLOG/FOOD HEAVEN!

cvanocur — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:40:00 GMT

Some of you may remember David Northfield.

He worked at ABC 4 News for many years and is one of the nicest, most decent people I have ever had the pelasure of working with.

I bring this up because David was sometimes described as a "Foodie" - someone who is a combination of gourmet and food junkie.

David also hails from the Bay area where I recently spent a few days.

I mention all this because of a place called the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero at the Port of San Francisco.

The Ferry Building is truly food heaven.

Recently renovated, this landmark building is now home to all sorts of restaurants and food stores.

There is a seemingly endless array of fresh fruit and vegetables and cheese and meat and seafood and, oh, did I mention chocolate!

My favorite is a little cafe called Boulettes Larder.

Their fresh bread and scrambled eggs and hard to find teas may have made for the perfect breakfast.

One morning, I even ran into Willie Brown, the former of San Fran.

Simply put. it's a great place to read the paper and slowly break in a new day by the Bay.

I am sure David Northfield would approve.

In other words, I left my heart and stomach in San Francisco :)

Until my next blog, I will be in the political Backroom.

VANOCUR'S BACKROOM BLOG /SHARPTON VISIT

cvanocur — Tue, 22 May 2007 01:19:00 GMT

Monday, May 21, 2007.

What to make of Al Sharpton?

The Reverend visited Utah today, meeting with lower level LDS Church leaders and touring Temple Square.

But what he didn't do was answer questions from the Utah media. Not hard ones, not easy ones. None.

Sure, he gave a prepared statement - one talking about faith and "common ground" - but then abruptly walked out of sight.

Would have been nice to hear his answers about why he implied Mormons don't believe in God...or why he has referred to the LDS faith as a "denomination based on racism (Washington Post)."

However, we never got the chance to ask.

After a day spent unsuccessfully tailing him, all we were left with was a few unsatisfying moments. Only a brief photo op and what seemed like some carefully scripted remarks.

Apparently, Reverend Sharpton said on his radio broadcast today that he learned a lot about Mormons.

I wish we could say the same about Mr. Sharpton.

Until my next BLOG, I'll be in the political backroom.

CHRIS VANOCUR'S BACKROOM BLOG

cvanocur — Wed, 16 May 2007 20:45:00 GMT

Wednesday, May 16th, 2007.

Just two days to go until the big Rocky Roast.

This Friday, the Salt Lake Acting Company is throwing a big Rocky Anderson funrd-raising roast at the Rose Wagner Theater (Tix still available).

Along with my pal Tom Barberi, Babs Delay and some other local yucksters, I need to come up with some barbs to lightly poke fun at the Mayor.

Too bad there isn't any material :)

Seriously, where to start?

His wanting to impeach the President and the Vice-President, his speaking out agaisnt the Iraq War, global warming, the City Council...not to mention those orange pedestrian flags...I mean, really, there's nothing to talk about.

Oh, did I forgot Sean Hannity?

And, perhaps, even more importantly, what does wear to a roast?

I know what to wear to a barbecue, but a roast is an entirely different beast.

The invitation says to wear "funky chic."

HUH?

I am lucky if, on a daily basis, I can get my socks to match. And they want me to be able to pull of "chic?"

Seriously, to be both funny and fashionable, that's a lot of pressure!

If anybody out in the blogosphere can help with Rocky Roasts or fashion tips, email me at chris@abc4.tv

Until the next BLOG, I'll be in the Backroom.

BACKROOM BLOG #1

cvanocur — Tue, 15 May 2007 16:06:00 GMT

I'm so nervous.

My first blog.

As I often do, I can't help but think about my dear old Dad.

When he started his reporting career at the Manchester Guardian back in 1954, he pounded his stories out on an old English typewriter.

Probably with two fingers like I am doing now. Except his pieces were well written,

The Guardian editor, Mr. Bevan, actually corrected my father's copy with a quill pen.

Fast forward a half century.

I am starting something called a blog - a name which reminds me of some sort of swamp creature. Something I might have seen as a child in a black and white Saturday matinee.

Back when my dad began, the notion of computers, the internet and blogs probably existed only in Robert Heinlein sci-fi novels.

Yet here is one of his sons blogging away.

In this twice-weekly rant, I will obviously talk about Politics. Hence the name "Backroom."

But I will also write about the media, about scuttlebutt I hear downtown and maybe even some Page Six type stuff.

And as I do this, I will try and keep in mind some advice Mr. Bevan once gave my dad.

Early on, Mr. Bevan reminded my father that,

"Here at the Guardian, we avoid cliches. Even the newer ones."

Until my next blog, I'll be in the political backroom.

CPV