Former Dayton anchor, investigative reporter to be immortalized in history tonight

A longtime Dayton anchor and a local investigative reporter with 35 years of experience will be immortalized in local history tonight.

>> MORE: WHIO-TV’s Otte to be inducted into Broadcasters Hall of Fame

Jim Otte — the host of WHIO Reports and a member of the I-Team — and former WHIO anchor Natasha Williams are among the journalists to be inducted in the Dayton Area Broadcasters Hall of Fame during a special ceremony tonight, Sept. 21, at the Marriott at the University of Dayton.

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Dick Bieser, a former WHIO reporter and Saturday evening anchor, will also be honored.

Sharon Howard, a Hall of Fame founder and board member, said plaques recognizing the inductees will hang in the Hall of Fame located on the second floor, southwest wall of the Dayton Convention Center.

“The main purpose is to recognize and acknowledge these broadcast professionals who work to bring information to the community  and become community partners,” she said.

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Six broadcasters, four broadcasting “pioneers,” and a Community Service Award honoree will be inducted this year.

These honorees are:

James (Jim) Otte: Otte is the reporter and producer of the WHIO I-Team at WHIO-TV and the host of "WHIO Reports," a weekly public affairs program. His tenure with the station dates back to 1988. He began his broadcasting career on Ohio Public Radio in 1982.

“Jim is known for his investigative work covering the Ohio Statehouse, government and politics,” the hall said. “At WHIO-TV, he began the ‘Wastebusters’ segment covering government waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayers’ dollars in Dayton.”

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Christopher Geisen: A popular co-host of the No. 1 rated "Kerrigan & Christopher Morning Show" on WTUE ratio from (1988 to 1999). He continues working in radio, as well as volunteering at charity events.

Joe Smith: Smith is the long-time host of "Clubhouse 22" on WKEF-TV from 1970-1979 and vice president of production from 1980 to 1986. He currently works on-air in Portland, Ore.

John King: With 30 years of radio broadcasting experience, King is currently the senior vice president/market manager at Alpha Media USA in Dayton.

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Credit: Charles Caperton

Credit: Charles Caperton

Natasha Williams: Presently an anchor at KTVE in Monroe, La., Natasha has a history in the broadcasting industry dating back to 1990 in Jackson, Tenn., where she began her career.

She was a reporter and morning anchor for WHIO-TV for nearly 20 years before a brief stint with WCPO-TV in Cincinnati and WKEF here in Dayton.

Jeff Stevens: Today, he is senior vice president of programming for iHeartMedia/Dayton, program director at WMMX and morning show co-host of the "Jeff, Gina and Dave Show." He is also the host of the Time Warp Cafe weekdays at noon and host of the 80s Show, which is broadcast on over 40 iHeartRadio stations across the country.

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Those named “pioneers” include:

Credit: WHIO-TV

Credit: WHIO-TV

Dick Bieser: He began his broadcasting career in 1952, in his hometown of Centralia, IL. He rose to the position of news director and managed the station for nearly two years before getting back into news.

He joined the WHIO-TV news department as daytime assignment editor before he became news director. He worked as a contributing reporter on-air and anchored the newscasts Saturday evenings. Dick worked at WHIO-TV from 1965 to 1993.

Ed Hamlyn: Hamlyn was the former news director at WDTN Television. He was born in Hamilton in 1917. He began his broadcasting career with stops in Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Texas, before landing in Dayton.

Joe Rockhold: Rockhold hosted one of the first live entertainment television shows in the Dayton area on WHIO-TV. He created the popular character "Uncle Orrie," entertaining thousands of Miami Valley young people. In addition to his work as "Uncle Orrie," Joe Rockhold hosted various public affairs programs on WHIO.

Jack Jacobson: Jacobson created many popular characters, including "Nosey the Clown." Both Jacobson and Rockhold made television history at a time in the early 1950s when television was just coming of age.

Every two years, the hall names someone who “has been a friend of the media, as well as a dedicated and innovative leader in the community.”

This year's Community Service Award will be given to Judge Alice O. McCollum.

Judge McCollum is the first woman to serve on the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas Probate Division, having been first elected in 2002 and re-elected in 2008. Prior to sitting on the bench in the Probate Division, she was the first and only woman elected to the Dayton Municipal Court bench.

McCollum served the Dayton Municipal Court for 24 years and has served on many community boards.

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