The Jessica Savitch Distinguished Lecturer Series
The annual Jessica Savitch Distinguished Journalism Lecture Series brings in a high-profile broadcast journalist to honor alumna Jessica Savitch.
2012 Speaker:
Sam Champion
Weather Anchor, Good Morning America
Weather Editor, ABC News
Thursday, March 29, 2012
7:30 p.m.
Emerson Suites, Phillips Hall
Sam Champion is the weather anchor of ABC's Good Morning America, reporting on the nation’s weather throughout the morning broadcast. He also serves as weather editor for ABC News.
In addition to covering the national forecast, Champion frequently travels to report on weather-related stories around the country and the globe. Since joining Good Morning America, he has reported from the front lines of wildfires in California; from the scenes of hurricanes in Florida, Texas, and Louisiana; and from winter storm systems in Denver, Chicago, and Boston. As part of the morning show’s “New 7 Wonders of the World” series, Champion broadcast live afloat a raft in the middle of the polar ice caps.
Champion is also at the forefront of reporting on the environment and climate change. In 2007, he traveled to Paris for the release of a groundbreaking report on global warming by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). He regularly brings tips and information on how to be environmentally efficient and aware with his regular “Just One Thing” reports. He has also played a key role in the network’s Earth Day reporting.
In addition to the weather and the environment, Champion regularly interviews authors, newsmakers, and celebrities during the morning program and hosts the Good Morning America summer concert series from Rumsey Playfield in Central Park.
In August 2009, Champion anchored his first 20/20 special, “Blown Away: Twisted Terror,” which chronicled the tornado that devastated Parkersburg, Iowa, in 2008.
Before joining ABC News in September 2006, Champion spent 18 years at WABC-TV in New York. Prior to working at WABC, he was a weekend weather anchor and news reporter at WPSD-TV in Paducah, Kentucky. He began his career in broadcast news as an intern at WKYT-TV in Lexington, Kentucky, while attending college.
Champion graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast news. He is involved in many charities in the New York City area, including the Multiple Sclerosis Society. He resides in New York City.
