Posted on: Wednesday, August 30, 2006
State's only female TV sports anchor
Liz Chun
KGMB's Liz Chun, a Roosevelt and Colorado State alum, has been the state's only female TV sports anchor for four years. During the football season, Chun tries to attend practices in Manoa daily. She conducts interviews, edits video, produces, writes and anchors sportscasts at 6 and 10 p.m. She credits weekend sports anchor Steve Uyehara for helping her do it all. Chun also attends every UH home game and often works seven days a week to keep up. Trying to tackle Warrior football will be even more of a challenge this year as Chun will be hosting the June Jones Show starting Sept. 3.
What do you enjoy most about covering UH football and have there been any obstacles you had to overcome on your job? Also, do you feel a sense of responsibility or accomplishment being the only female sports anchor in the state?
"Usually around this time of the year, I warn my friends that I have little if any time to spare. 'Things are kicking off in Manoa, I'll catch up with you in January,' is usually how it goes.
"Many wonder if covering the Warriors is any different for me than 'the next guy.' I usually reply no, but I often wonder if that's a naive answer. As much as I ask the same questions, pick the same story focus and share the same interview privileges, I'm sure I stand out at times. But I've never felt it. What matters most to me is that I'm treated with the same respect, and I have.
"The only time I can remember possibly being singled out as a female sports reporter was an incident I had with one of UH's opponents. I was interrupted three times during an interview with the quarterback. It was the same thing every time. Someone was throwing a ball over my head and hitting the fence right behind the subject of my interview. At first I thought that I was in the way of some kind of drill. But soon enough I realized I wasn't. The worst thing about it was the person throwing the ball was the head coach. I turned around and yelled to the coach who was standing with a bunch of other reporters (all men) and said, 'Are you trying to test your arm or are you trying to test my patience?' That's when he stopped. I'm not completely convinced it was a 'gender moment' but a former colleague is convinced otherwise. He says that would have never happened to me if I was a guy.
"Covering UH football has really helped me develop and grow in my coverage of all sports. When you have to be familiar with 100 players, be aware of position changes and injuries, and have knowledge of statistics and results, you're forced to multi task. I mainly go to practice to keep up. Being the visual person that I am, the repetition helps me see things clearer and understand more.
"If you were wondering who the coach was who 'tested my patience,' it was none other than USC head coach Pete Carroll and the quarterback was Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart."
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