NewsChannel 5 captured 14 awards including the prestigious News Excellence in the 21st Annual Midsouth Regional Emmy Awards, which aired live from Schermerhorn Symphony Center in downtown Nashville.
The station received 36 Emmy nominations, the most of any television station in the Midsouth region. This was the third year in a row that the station earned the News Excellence Emmy. News Director Mike Cutler accepted the honor, saying that he represented an entire network of terrific people.
After quoting an African proverb about endurance and preparedness, Cutler closed his comments by hinting that more big things are on the horizon at NewsChannel 5.
Joe Elmore, host and producer of Tennessee Crossroads on public television, hosted the program.
The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, a professional organization that fosters excellence in television, has 15,000 members in 19 chapters.
Television markets in Tennessee, North Carolina- except for Asheville- and Huntsville, Ala., comprise the Nashville/Midsouth Region.
Members of the NATAS Northwest Chapter in Seattle judged the MidSouth Region's entries.
Twenty six different NewsChannel 5 staffers were nominated.
Anchor Vicki Yates and photojournalist Charlie Woodward received the station's first Emmy of the night for specialty assignment report for school patrol.
The station's meteorologists were lauded for their team coverage of the April tornadoes that ravaged parts of Middle Tennessee.
Reporter Lyra Manning received top honors in the Human Interest Story category for her work about Nashville's hip hop culture.
Investigative reporter Phil Williams won three awards including for work he and Bryan Staples did that revealed corruption among top Tennessee lawmakers.
When Williams accepted the award for their reports about ticket fixing, again he thanked newsroom leadership who supported their efforts, noting that "when we say NewsChannel 5 investigates, it's not just a slogan but a commitment" throughout the station.
Staples also thanked NewsChannel 5 President and General Manager Debbie Turner, Cutler and other newsroom colleagues when the pair won for their work on school bus safety.
Holding the award, Staples said, "We didn't do this story for this," Staples said, gesturing to the award. "We did it for the children who died on the school bus and for our children."
The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences also posthumously inducted former NewsChannel 5 reporter Dana Kaye into the Silver Circle to honor her quarter-century of broadcasting excellence.
She covered Fort Campbell, Ky., and reported from both Iraq and Afghanistan.
The longtime news reporter started her broadcast career as a radio station's helicopter reporter in Monroe, La. She worked in Baton Rouge and Tyler, Texas, before she arrived in Nashville.
Kaye was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004 and underwent chemotherapy. She returned to work that summer. A year later, doctors found a tumor in her brain. She underwent chemotherapy and radiation for brain cancer.
At 50, Kaye died in June and hundreds of people attended the July 2 visitation in Dickson and the memorial service the next day in Dickson.
In the video tribute, the narrator described Kaye as "a rare reporter who covered the hard news with a soft heart."
Standing beside her father as she clasped the crystal pillar honoring her mother, Kaye's daughter, Alden said, "She was the most strong-willed, compassionate person that I ever knew. There wasn't a story she couldn't get."
"My family and I would love to thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts," she said. "Thank you very much. We all appreciate it."
NewsChannel 5's 21st Annual Midsouth Emmy Winners
NEWS EXCELLENCE
NewsChannel 5 Network, Mike Cutler, WTVF
NEWSCAST/EVENING
NewsChannel 5 at 10, Kelly Broadway, WTVF
CONTINUING COVERAGE
Precious Cargo, Phil Williams, Bryan Staples, WTVF
HUMAN INTEREST STORY
Cashville, Lyra Manning. WTVF
HUMAN INTEREST SERIES
Kenya Diaries, Barry Simmons, Iain Montgomery, WTVF
INVESTIGATIVE REPORT
The Ticket Fix, Phil Williams, Bryan Staples, WTVF
SPECIALTY ASSIGNMENT REPORT
School Patrol, Vicki Yates, Charlie Woodward, WTVF
WEATHERCAST
Storm 5 Severe Weather Coverage, Ron Howes, Lelan A Statom, Charlie Neese, WTVF
DOCUMENTARY/TOPICAL
Capitol Hill Corruption, Phil Williams, Bryan Staples, WTVF
SERVICE (Informational)
Surviving the Storm, Charlie Neese, Mike Rose, WTVF
EDITOR /NEWS
Shark Bites, Nathan Sharkey, WTVF
PHOTOGRAPHY/NEWS
Bud Nelson Stories, Ted Nelson, WTVF
WRITER /NEWS
Writing is Fun, Barry Simmons WTVF
WRITER/SHORT FORM
five cent words, Richard Eller, Jerry Walker, WTVF