Holiday Funk Week

The days between Christmas and New Years are always kinda dead around any work place. It can be a very laidback time, but also a bit frustrating to find things to fill your shows. I’m back from a few days off for Christmas… and am currently the only Producer in the building. Blame the crazy schedules, but it kinda feels like a weekend around here. But no matter what the calendar says, we’re set to bring you a full version of South Florida Nightly News.

Bhutto’s Assassination
The biggest story around here the past two days has been the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan. It’s truly a sad story, and watching the video of her funeral procession today gave me chills. Thousands of people walking, as her casket is carried to it’s final resting place. We continue to follow that story today…

New Year’s Resolution
With New Years Eve right around the corner… the dreaded list of resolutions comes to mind. Are you hoping to lose weight? Stop swearing? Eat better? Repair a relationship? No matter what it is, the New Year usually makes people reflect on the past year… and what is to come.

Patella, Tuna, and Dolphins

Basketball is my favorite sport, right after football. And Alonzo Mourning is one of my favorite basketball players. I got to meet him this summer while producing a half-hour show on Zo’s Summer Groove, and was thoroughly impressed by the kind of man and basketball player that he is. Not only is he an athlete, but he’s a community leader as well. So watching him go down on the hardwood last night was not an easy thing. It was replayed over and over again in evening newscasts, even circled and highlighted to show how his knee got hurt. Ari Odzer, an avid basketball fan who knows a thing or two about serious knee injuries, is on the Zo story tonight at 7pm.

Another big sports story that we’re all over tonight is about a big Tuna. Who is that? Even though I follow football, I must’ve missed the day they explained why Bill Parcells is nicknamed The Tuna. Either way, Adam Kuperstein says that “this Tuna is Dolphin friendly”… he’ll be reporting at 6pm, and look for the return of Not Your Average Joe tonight at 7pm.

Saturday Afternoon Sunshine

I’m a football kind of girl. I love watching the game, I love cheering them on, and I love watching the highlights when it’s all over. With the disappointing Dolphins (up until this wknd), and the end of the regular season for my beloved Gators, I spent my Saturday afternoon watching good ol’ fashioned high school football. It wasn’t Friday Night Lights… more like Saturday Afternoon Sunshine… but it was great either way. My dad and I shared the couch while watching Booker T. Washington take on Nease from Ponte Vedra Beach. Who is Nease? They are the school that produced Gator favorite and Heisman winner Tim Tebow, and they’ve also been to the high school 5A championships several years in a row. It was a great game… and it was great to hear the school that used to be a middle school (Booker T.), hit it big in high school sports. Later that evening, I missed the blowout that was the Northwestern HS game… but I celebrated for them either way.

This year two Miami-Dade County schools took home football state championships (Broward took the 3rd)… tonight Amara Sohn will bring us the story of Northwestern Senior High… and their second PERFECT SEASON in a row.

Tonight Jennifer Gray will also be live at our first Holiday Home of the season…

And Hetal Gandhi will show us how to stay safe while shopping…

Hope you join us! (and you’re bundled up like we are in the newsroom)

Where Have All The Athletes Gone?

I’m not a big baseball fan. I watch a game now and then, and enjoy going to the ballpark… but I couldn’t list stats, or even tell you who won the World Series this year. (it’s not all a waste… I’m a football fan!) The point is… I don’t know Baseball, but I know some of the players listed in today’s MLB Steroids Investigation.

Roger Clemens. check.
Johny Damon. check.
Gary Sheffield. check. (I only remember him from his Marlins days)

At least one player in every single team in the league is listed in the scathing report… and it’s been going on for decades.

We’ll also take a look tonight at the Liberty City 7. Jurors have finally deadlocked on the case… one of the seven men was acquitted today, and a mistrial was declared.

Caught On Camera

We use the phrase “Caught on Camera” a lot around here… sometimes, probably too much. Surveillance video helps catch bad guys, and it also helps the good guys get cleared.

The newly formed Miami Gardens police department will have tasers with cameras on them. Ari Odzer takes a look at these devices… their advantages and drawbacks.

Olga Downgraded
Olga is now a Depression… but doesn’t make a difference to the Dominican Republic… where several people are dead after the storm.

Exotic Volunteers
Miami Metrozoo needs help taking care of exotic animals that were once pets. Hear from the always-lively Ron Magill.

Where Are The Wii’s?

Just last night I was driving home on I-95, when I saw a balloon high above a gallery in Miami… and thought to myself, “wow that’s distracting.” I couldn’t completely make out what the balloon said, but I did catch the word “gallery.” (I shouldn’t have been trying to read it while driving anyway!). The reason I bring it up is because the balloon was just a couple seconds out of my life yesterday, but today it was the lead story in the morning and noon newscasts. The balloon was just supposed to attract attention to the gallery… but instead, it helped burn it down.

You see something one day (like this balloon), think nothing of it, and next thing you know… it’s on the news, or you start hearing about it everywhere. Happened to me several times. Has that ever happened to you?

Where Are The Wii’s?
Last holiday season they were all the craze. You could go bowling, play tennis, and basically just work up a sweat in your own living room while playing video games. You’d think that a year later they’d be easier to find. Not so. Ari Odzer searches for the Nintendo Wii…

Shopping Strategies
What’s the best day to shop? What are some things you can do to avoid the headaches of holiday shopping? Sharon Lawson will give us the inside scoop on all the things you can do to stay ahead of the game this season.

Case Of The Mondays

We’ve all got a case of the Mondays. We’re following up on a variety of stories that broke over the weekend… the main one being in the weather department.

There’s a storm brewing out there. Wait a second… didn’t Hurricane Season just end? Seems that doesn’t really matter… Chief Meteorologist Paul Deanno will explain it to us.

He’s a former SuperBowl winning NFL lineman… who is focused on Judaism these days. From devoting himself to the field… to devoting himself to his Jewish Heritage. Adam Kuperstein tells us the story of an NFL player who turns to Judaism.

Plus– Diana Gonzalez takes us inside the first Mobile Veterinary MRI service in Florida.

Compass Points To Controversy

That are certain things in South Florida that remind me of my childhood. I grew up here, but sometimes forget that until I drive by something that holds dear memories. The small plot of land in the middle of several Coral Gables streets, right across from City Hall, and near Miracle Mile… (sadly, the years haven’t improved my sense of direction!) … well that little spot holds a gigantic Santa statue every year. Jolly Ol’ Saint Nick has remained the same in every one of my photos growing up… while I was the only thing in the photograph that changed. And living in a town where it doesn’t snow, and the only signs of the holidays are store decorations and city Christmas trees… I always welcome the site of the gigantic Santa. (does he even still live there?) Tonight Jennifer Gray will be live in Coral Gables just in time for the city’s holiday celebration.

The holiday season also brings a whole slew of movie options to watch with the family. Now I’m sure you’ve seen the trailer for The Golden Compass… well so have several religious leaders who are now saying that the film is Anti-God. One South Florida parochial school even sent a letter home to parents, advising they don’t take their children to see the film. Ari Odzer will have a live report.

Plus in the wake of the Omaha Mall Massacre… what is your neighborhood mall doing to keep you safe? Willard Shepard takes a look.

And several of our NBC6 family members headed to Career Day at a school down the street from us… we’ll take you there, tonight at 7pm.

Jesus In Your X-Ray?

You’ve heard of pancakes, waffles, and grilled cheese bearing the image of Jesus and even the Virgin Mary. In Miami thousands lined up for hours to see a divine image inside a church.

Now one man is claiming that there’s an image of Jesus in his X-Ray. Join us at 7pm to decide for yourself.

Starbucks With A Side Of Foreclosure

Deadly Mall Shooting
What leads someone to shoot and kill random people inside a crowded mall, with the idea that “at least I’ll be famous.” That’s the question being posed today by those affected by the deadly shooting in Omaha, NE. A 19-year-old gunman opened fire… and changed that community forever. Tonight we’ll have a live report from Nebraska from Leanne Gregg.

Mortgage Rate Relief
Home foreclosures have hit a record high… forcing several people to put their houses on the auction block. Ari Odzer takes a look at this problem… coming up at 7.

Tall or Grande?
Were you one of the drivers on the 836 this morning who got a free toll and a coupon to Starbucks? Talk about advertising to the masses…

The Grammy Goes To…
Grammy Nominations are out… and Kanye West and “Rehab” singer Amy Winehouse top the list. We’ll take a look at some of the other nominees.

Baby Got Back
And my favorite story of the day… involves a Newlywed Couple who turned into Youtube stars all with their first dance to a 90’s ‘classic.’ The couple did the unusual and the funny to surprise their guests… the video appeared on youtube… and as they say, the rest is history. You’ve got to watch the video to truly appreciate the moment.