Why Watching “The Ones to Watch” was a part of Growing up in the Grand Valley for me.

  Growing up in the Grand Valley my family and I would always watch the news before dinner.  I remember when 11 News signed on the air.  I remember the first station promotion with one of our news vehicles (the same ones we have to this day) driving up the Monument, the Phil Collins song, “I can feel it coming in the air tonight” playing in the background and the tag line at the end of the commercial saying… “It’s Coming.”  At that time, I had no idea that today, I would be so involved with the daily operations of 11 News, or that the station would become such a huge part of who I am.

  Since that first promotion, a lot has changed at 11 News.  But, a lot has stayed the same too and I’ve been here to see most of it.  What hasn’t changed?  We still have the hardest working news team in the Grand Valley, and we continue to have, hands down, the most watched news product.  Our station consistently has the #1, most watched, 5:30 and 10 p.m. newscasts.

  It’s not just a coincidence that we’ve been able to maintain the status as Grand Junction’s News Leader and deliver more ratings in the evening than the other two stations combined.  It takes a hard working and dedicated team with each person doing their part to bring the residents of Western Colorado the best possible product each night.  Our reporters truly are the kings and queens of multi-tasking.  They shoot, edit, write and re-work several stories each day.  Our photographers don’t just shoot video, they write for our newscasts edit for the web and contribute story ideas, too.  In addition, we have the most experienced and professional anchors.  This week, Jean Reynolds will celebrate her 12th year with KKCO.

  In my opinion, what has always made us different from any other media outlet in the city is our station’s sense of team.  We always help each other out, whether its someone in our creative services department running audio for one of our newscasts, or one of our reporters running a live shot for our newscast, we all wear many hats.  That’s what sets us apart. 

  This team mentality was evident to me this week when Chipotle offered free food to people in the Media.  We all packed inside the restaurant (it may have had something to do with the fact that in addition to being overworked, we’re also extremely underpaid, so you say free food and the Media will almost always show up)… and we even took a picture.  We help each other out because we care about each other and care about the responsibility we have to the community, to deliver accurate and easy to understand news.

Our hardworking staff, team mentality and dominance in the market are just a few of the reasons I watch "The Ones to Watch."  Why do you?  Please feel free to leave your comments.

 - Amanda