Somerville was pulled off the air over his coverage of Gabby's case, MSNBC host Joy Reiddiscussed the Gabby Petito case. She has previously reported or edited for Bay Area news and lifestyle publications, including Walnut Creek Patch, and Diablo, Oakland and Alameda magazines, as well as The Nation in Bangkok, Thailand and The Economist. 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And the photo has since gone. Somerville, who has an adopted black daughter, reportedly pushed back after the tagline was refused. Shortly before the 5 p.m. broadcast, Eikel told Somerville she planned to cut the tag after newsroom editors raised concerns. Update: A spokesperson for Fox tells the Mercury News, "We can confirm Frank is taking time away from the desk to focus on his health and we welcome his return when he is ready.". The driver of the Audi stepped out before Somerville pushed the vehicle across the intersection with his car before ramming it into a light pole, according to documents provided to SFGATE by the district attorneys office. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. I would give anything to work there. Following a car crash late last December, embattled Bay Areareporter Frank Somerville now faces two DUI charges. Since his departure from KTVU, he has steadily posted videos on Instagram featuring an assortment of commentary. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! But as community groups voice frustration, questions also remain over Somervilles suspension. I appreciate and admire what they do every day.. Previously: Anchorman Frank Somerville's Future at KTVU In Doubt As Rumors Swirl About High Drama In the Newsroom. Somerville, 63, won the awards at KTVU, which included an accolade for best on-camera news anchor. So, nothing like this happens again. Galvis said activists intentions werent to wag the finger but to foster a dialogue with a media organization thats a Bay Area icon with tremendous power.. He is extremely sorry to the person he hit and has provided all information to his insurance company to cover the other drivers losses. According to The Mercury News, Somerville wanted to add a tagline to a segment about the case to point out the disparity in the coverage of missing persons cases of white women relative to women of color. Sources said that Somerville was informed by station management the next day that he was being suspended. There was no word on how heated the discussion got. Neither Fox nor KTVU has made any official statement on the matter. Somerville wanted to add a brief tagline at the end of the report that questioned the extraordinary level of media coverage devoted to the story. Earlier this year, Somerville disappeared from the air without explanation after a fairly strange Memorial Day Weekend broadcast in which he was slurring words and seemed unable to read the teleprompter. Because Mr. Somervilles case is pending, he cannot personally comment at this time, but he takes full responsibility for what happened that night.. 53-127 m (174-417 ft) (avg. I think its probably time to (let them know) were still listening and waiting, Holland said. DSW is closing on Powell Street, Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen says the metaverse scares her, and SF Mayor London Breed has come out vocally in support of the recall of three school board members. He is a graduate of Bowie State University in Maryland with a BS degree in communications. He took an indefinite leave of absence in June following a broadcast of the TheTenO'ClockNewsonKTVU in which he slurred lines and left mid-broadcast, resulting in speculation over his health and well-being. Somerville is the adoptive father of a Black teen daughter. Days later, a spokesperson for Fox the network that owns and operates KTVU announced that Somerville would take an indefinite leave of absence to focus on his health.. At the time, Somerville said he had not yet lined up offers to work at other stations but wanted to keep working and was disappointed about how his time at KTVU had ended. According to a police statement in charging documents obtained Thursday, officers responded to Broadway and West Grand Avenue at about 8:20 p.m. Dec. 30, 2021 for a vehicle collision. But she hadnt and the new tag was removed. But if Petitos story needs to be told, so do the stories of thousands of overlooked women of color, they said. [citation needed] He attended Berkeley High School, graduating in 1976. Somerville, now 64, was arrested at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 30 in the 2200 block of Broadway following a collision between his 2014 Porsche 911 and a silver Audi, according to a probable cause statement by Officer Natalie Windham. A tag is a brief closing to a story thats typically read by an anchor. 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Frank Somerville has spoken out for the first time since his Dec. 30 arrest for a suspected DUI. He works out and practices the Israeli martial art of Krav Maga.[20]. Reportedly, Somerville butted heads with KTVU News Director Amber Eikel over the addition of this "tag" that Somerville wanted to say on air, with Eikel saying that the topic deserved separate coverage at a later date. At that point, Somerville stopped driving; police arrived a short time later. 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That's a shivering duck sheltering a puppy with its wings. Somerville was hospitalized shortly after the incident and was booked at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. Since then, Fox and station management have refused to publicly speak to the issue. "I feel like a total idiot," Somerville allegedly said. Somerville is expected to appear in court Feb. 28, the Bay Area News Group reports. 42 Portfolio, Somerville, MA 02143 is a 9 bedroom, 18 bathroom, 15,789 sqft multi-family built in 1900. Off work, he enjoys playing in bands, busking and karaoke. His next scheduled court appearance will be 9 a.m. May 6 at Oaklands Wiley Manuel courthouse, a district attorney spokesperson said. After the initial collision, the driver of the Audi got out of their vehicle and Somerville, in his Porsche, allegedly pushed the Audi across the intersection of Broadway and West Grand Avenue until the Audi hit a pole on the southwest corner of the intersection, Windham's statement said. But Reynolds also faulted KTVU for fueling the controversy by not meeting with activists to discuss their complaints about coverage, saying that journalism organizations must offer a level of transparency and accountability., While not publicly commenting to reporters about his suspension, Somerville took to Instagram late last month to thank his fans for his support in standing up for what he believes no matter the consequences., We in the media cant be afraid to look in the mirror and ask ourselves tough questions about race and our coverage, Somerville said. The photo shows him with a beard and the caption: I think I look pretty cool for 63 if I do say so myself In response to a follower who said Somerville didnt look well, he said, I feel great. He also was off the air for much of last summer following a now-infamous May 30, 2021 newscast, when he repeatedly slurred and stumbled over his words and appeared to have trouble reading off the teleprompter. The crash had nothing to do with it, Somerville said, saying managers had decided to cut him loose months earlier. His name came after his father's friend, Frank Patty and his parental grandfather, William Somerville . Somerville, driving a 2014 Porsche 911, rear-ended a silver Audi. 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[5], In 2013, Somerville apologized on behalf of KTVU for an incident in which racist pilot names were read out in a broadcast on Asiana Airlines Flight 214. He grew up in the Los Angeles area, went to UC Berkeley and has previously worked as a news reporter at USA Today and SFGATE and as a music writer at NPR. OAKLAND The Alameda County District Attorneys Office has filed two misdemeanor charges against former KTVU news anchor Frank Somerville in connection with his arrest late last year on suspicion of driving under the influence, authorities said. The California native first started at KTVU as an intern in 1981 while attending San Francisco State University. Frank Somerville finally returns to KTVU: Are viewers owed an explanation? I just dont notice the things you see, he added. Somerville, who has a mixed-race daughter, wanted to make a statement at the end of a segment regarding "missing white woman syndrome," a term coined by the late Gwen Ifill about American media's obsession with the disappearance of young, pretty Caucasian women, when very little national attention is given to the thousands of people of color who go missing every year. The venerated KTVU anchor spoke to the Bay Area News Group in an interview published . Before the 6 p.m. broadcast, a producer, not familiar with the earlier discussions between Somerville and Eikel, noticed that a shortened tag had been added to the Petito update. According to station sources, Somerville, 63, has been suspended indefinitely by Channel 2 management after a disagreement with news director Amber Eikel over coverage of the Gabby Petito homicide case. Holland and Galvis insist the ultimate focus of their rallies was not Somerville, nor were they saying the media shouldnt cover Petitos killing. Somerville takes these charges very seriously. Frank Somerville (born March 19, 1958) is an American television journalist. He became co-anchor of the stations highly rated Mornings on 2 in 1992. Somerville later excused that saying he had mistakenly taken an Ambien before going on the air. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! In interviews this week, Somerville declined to say anything more about his departure from KTVU, his arrest or his plans. The longtime KTVU news anchor is married to his wife, Donna Wright, a television producer. PUBLISHED: June 1, 2021 at 12:54 p.m. | UPDATED: November 9, 2021 at 3:19 p.m. KTVU news anchor Frank Somerville was off the air again Tuesday following his abrupt exit from a Sunday night . Early Life and Education. Its another strange twist in a turbulent year for Somerville. Last fall, he told this news organization that he anticipated his days anchoring at KTVU were over after he was suspended in September for an off-air dispute about the coverage of the Gabby Petito case. There was no word on how heated the discussion got. But if Somerville thought the issue was so important, then he should have used his journalistic gravitas to push for a second story to run after the segment or a series of stories to run over the next couple days, Reynolds said. In November, Somerville insisted he was right to push for the commentary, but he publicly apologized for all the drama because of the way it affected people who work at the station. KTVU anchor Frank Somerville anchors the five o'clock news at the KTVU studio on Tuesday, May 5, 2009, in Oakland, Calif. It's been one year since Somerville replaced longtime anchor Dennis . Mini Bio (1) Frank Somerville co-anchors the weekday editions of "KTVU Channel 2 News at 5," "KTVU Channel 2 News at 6" and "The Ten O'Clock News on KTVU Channel 2." Somerville joined San Francisco's KTVU Channel 2's Mornings on 2 and The Noon News in January 1992. The couple has two daughters - one of which, Callie, who was adopted in 2005 when she was a baby. Now, the tagline controversy has put Somerville in a position that journalists usually find uncomfortable: instead of reporting on the story, he is the story. 42 Portfolio is located in Union Square, Somerville. Jay C. Barmann is a fiction writer and web editor who's lived in San Francisco for 20+ years. Somerville spoke this morning to local media hound Rich Lieberman who said Somerville was speaking to him exclusively but very quickly Somerville gave quotes to the Mercury News and the Chronicle saying that he's all but certain he won't ever be at the anchor desk again at KTVU. The Berkeley native had been an intern at KTVU many years before. Jurors hopelessly deadlocked in Bay Point murder trial, mistrial declared A picture of him styling his Black, adopted daughter's hair went viral on the Internet. We wanted to give KTVU a chance to see if they would independently respond, said George Holland, the president of the Oakland chapter of the NAACP, which hosted a rally for 40 to 50 people on Oct. 2. His parents raised him in Berkeley, California. Another white person in Pacific Heights has been captured on video being an asshole to a person of color, this time questioning a man who was delivering Narcan to a nearby halfway house. In an interview with the Bay Area News Group published Friday, the celebrated former KTVU anchor. "No one at the station Fox/KTVU has contacted me. Somerville displayed symptoms of driving under the influence of alcohol, with bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from his person. After a field sobriety test showed signs of impairment, the documents said, two separate breathalyzer tests found that Somerville had blood alcohol levels of 0.239% and 0.219%. He said it was deeply concerning that KTVU wasnt even willing to have a conversation about media coverage when it serves the Bay Areas diverse viewers. Its really, really sad, because Ive given 31 years to the station, he said. The public silence from Channel 2 and Fox, its parent network, has fueled community frustration over the ostensible reason he was suspended a reported dispute over his push to add a brief commentary on racial inequity to the end of a straight-news story about the disappearance of social media influencer Gabby Petito, whose case had attracted a firestorm of media coverage. Hes one of the highest paid anchors in the Bay Area, but his contract is up in March. KTVU news anchor Frank Somerville again has been removed from the air, but this time a newsroom spat not an on-air meltdown appears to be the reason. Somerville was born on March 19, 1958, in San Luis Obispo, California, but was raised in Berkeley. Related Articles Somerville has said in the past that he wants to work two or three more years and would like to finish his career at KTVU. Since his suspension, Somerville has shared videos and posts on Instagram his social media platform of choice since leaving KTVU. MSNBC host Joy Reid criticized her own industry on her prime-time program, calling the Petito coverage an example of missing White woman syndrome, a term coined by the late PBS anchor Gwen Ifill to describe the medias often lopsided focus on white women and girls when they go missing. Martha Ross is a Bay Area News Group features writer for The Mercury News and East Bay Times who covers everything and anything related to popular culture, society, health, womens issues and families. Stay up to date! The collision took place near the intersection of Grand Avenue and Broadway Street just after 7:45 p.m. Dec. 31, 2021, Oakland police said at the time. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. "Well, the answer actually has a name: Missing White Woman Syndrome, the term coined by the late and greatGwen Ifillto describe the media and public fascination with missing white women likeLaci PetersonorNatalee Holloway,while ignoring cases involving of people of color.". KTVU was prepared to air a news report detailing the latest developments in the case. Somerville, a white male, is being lionized and becoming the topic of the story and not the women who have been ignored, Reynolds said. In an interview with the Bay Area News Group published Friday, the celebrated former KTVU anchor confirmed that his former employer will not re-sign him and allegedly not because of his arrest. Crime and Public Safety | He was also named anchor of Channel 2 News at 5 in April 2005, when it was launched. Look closely at this picture. Theylearned that Somerville had been driving a 2014 Porsche east on West Grand when he rear-ended an Audi stopped at the intersection. Jay C. Barmann is a fiction writer and web editor who's lived in San Francisco for 20+ years. All this drama isnt good, Somerville said. ), He disputed one comment that said he looked sick on a video he posted talking about an incident in which his daughter was allegedly racially profiled. Somervilles last newscast for KTVU was on Sept. 21. 3,096 sqft. This was Somervilles second suspension in a tumultuous year. Martha Ross is a Bay Area News Group features writer for The Mercury News and East Bay Times who covers everything and anything related to popular culture, society, health, womens issues and families. The New York-born Petito was slain during a cross-country van trip with her fiance, Brian Laundrie. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Wheres Frank Somerville? Somerville did reply to local media commentator Rich Lieberman on Monday saying he'd be back on the air that night and that the incident was simply a mistake regarding his prescription medication. That night he pushed to add a brief commentary on racial inequity to the end of a news update about the disappearance of Petito, a young White woman and social media influencer whose case had attracted a firestorm of media coverage. Related Articles Frank Somerville finally returns to KTVU: Are viewers owed an explanation? These rallies were followed by the City of San Leandro issuing an official proclamation honoring Somerville "for speaking out about missing women of color and setting an example of strength and equity to our community and those worldwide.". Reid hosted a discussion with representatives from the Black and Missing Foundation andNot Our Native Daughters Foundation when she made the comments. As per the sources, he was named after his father's friend Frank Patty. I work out every day.. He was off air for much of the summer, following his now-infamous May 30 newscast, when he repeatedly slurred and stumbled over his words and appeared to have trouble reading off the teleprompter. Crime and Public Safety | He was named after his father's childhood friend, Frank Patty, and his paternal grandfather, William Somerville. He said the couple spend their "together time" at the gym and that the pair "encourage each otherto keep pushing.". All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Ive given my heart and soul to Channel 2, he told the Bay Area News Group. During a now-infamous May 30 newscast, he repeatedly slurred and stumbled over his words and appeared to have trouble reading off the teleprompter. Chuck Barney is the TV critic and columnist for the Bay Area News Group. ", He adds, "It makes me really sad, because Ive given 31 years to the station. Longtime KTVU anchor Frank Somerville, who's been off the air since being suspended by management in September over a disagreement about the coverage of the Gabby Petito case, is speaking out and . [12], Somerville's suspension from KTVU would become permanent in January 2022 when his contract expired and KTVU would decide not to re-sign him. (He was a prolific Facebook user until September. Somerville did not reply to repeated efforts to contact him, nor did representatives from Fox News, who said last month only that the anchor had been suspended pending further review. No one at KTVU, including news director Amber Eikel, would speak on the record. In a statement Thursday afternoon, Somervilles attorney Shannan Dugan acknowledged the charges. After graduation he worked at local stations in Santa Rosa, California; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Providence, Rhode Island, before returning to the San Francisco Bay Area. [5] He then attended San Francisco State University. He first joined the San Francisco Bay Area station in 1991 and in 2008 became an anchor of the six o'clock and ten o'clock news broadcasts. When I saw Will Smith stand up for his wife, it reminded me of what I didnt do 30 years ago, he says in the video. You can see video of the Sunday 10 o'clock broadcast below, in which Somerville has difficulty reading from his teleprompter. Somerville was off the air for more than nine weeks before returning in August to Channel 2s The Ten OClock News without addressing his unusual absence. "I couldn't leave work at work," Somerville. This past week, Mornings On 2 anchor Mike Mibach has been in Somervilles chair, including on Thursday nights newscasts at 5 and 6 p.m. when he simply introduced himself: Im Mike Mibach., Somerville said his health was great, a point he also made in a photo he shared on Instagram with his 5,100 followers this week. So, I'm assuming I've done my last newscast," Somerville said. $5,550,000. This latest incident, coming just six weeks after Somervilles return to the anchor desk, will undoubtedly trigger speculation about his future with the station. Now, though, Somerville appears to be putting it out there that he's looking for a job. [6] The months-long saga surrounding longtime KTVU anchor Frank Somerville may have finally reached its conclusion. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. Silence irks activists, stirs questions about suspension, Oakland NAACP calls for Frank Somervilles reinstatement at KTVU. Longtime KTVU anchor Frank Somerville shared a Facebook post Saturday reflecting on his arrest and his termination from . He added that the decision was made long before December, when the alleged DUI took place. An ABC News report,citing statistics from the FBIs National Crime Information Center stated that at the end of 2020, the FBI had more than 89,000 active missing person cases, and 45 percent of those were people of color. He believes that his automotive collision that happened the month before did not play a role, instead, he believes management had already decided to cut him loose months earlier. His last video was published March 31, voicing his perspective on the Will Smith slap at the Oscars and recounting anincident in which his wifes boss repeatedly harassed her. If not, Ill go to other stations outside of the market. "[11], On December 30, 2021, Somerville was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence after an automobile collision. Since Somervilles suspension, two rallies have been held outside the KTVU studios in Jack London Square on Oct. 2 and and Oct. 12, both sparked by Somervilles reported desire to address disparities in media coverage of White crime victims like Petito versus women of color. As first reported by the Mercury News on Thursday, the venerated KTVU broadcaster faces two misdemeanor charges from the Alameda County District Attorneys Office one for driving under the influence of alcohol and a second for driving with a blood alcohol level of over 0.08% with potentially enhanced penalties because his BAC was over 0.15%. The longtime news anchor faced a rocky 2021. Crime and Public Safety | Why is 'Gabriel Salazar car accident' trending? According to two KTVU newsroom sources, who declined to give their names because they were not authorized to speak on the record, Somerville wanted to add a 46-second tag to an update on the Petito case, which aired Sept. 21.
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