Director's Cut Blog with Frank Macek

By Frank Macek In 2025, WKYC’s 3News is revisiting some of the most significant moments in Cleveland’s recent history, as the city observes key milestones—marking 10, 25, and 50 years since events that shaped its identity. These defining stories not only impacted lives across Northeast Ohio when they occurred, but also continue to influence the community’s path forward. Since first signing on in 1948, Channel 3 has been Cleveland’s eyewitness to history—capturing the events that defined generations, from neighborhood struggles to major decisions at City Hall. This year, we look back at three pivotal chapters: 1975, 2000, and 2015. Each of these years brought transformational change to Cleveland, and WKYC was there to document it all—delivering trusted reporting, community perspectives, and coverage that brought viewers closer to the heart of every story. 2015: Key Cleveland News Events (10 years ago) Courtesy: The Nation 1. Tamir Rice Investigation In 2015, Cleveland grappled with th...

By Frank Macek @maceknewsnation WKYC Studios has announced the addition of  January Keaton to the 3News family. The Lorain native is returning to her Cleveland roots as a new dayside reporter at WKYC says 3News Director of Content Adam Miller. January Keaton A Kent State graduate, January has worked for more than 15 years in various news markets, beginning her career here in Northeast Ohio behind-the-scenes as a producer at both WOIO and later for WEWS' morning broadcast.  January also has traveled the country as part of the touring cast of an acclaimed musical before eventually returning to her news roots in 2011 as an Anchor/MMJ for WTEN in Albany, NY.  From Albany to Cape Coral, Florida as a Traffic Anchor and from the Sunshine State to anchoring evening newscasts in Macon, GA and most recently, working in the Atlanta market, January brings her infectious energy and genuine passion for reporting and storytelling to her beloved hometown. January recently told us, "What ...

By Frank Macek @maceknewsnation Check out these classic promos featuring the Channel 3 News Team featuring the main talent of Leon Bibb, Doreen Gentzler, Shane Hollett and Kevin Mackey from Cleveland State University from 1986. How many of these do you remember on the air? Our special thanks to David Hrvatin at WKYC for digitizing these promos here at WKYC Studios.

By Frank Macek @maceknewsnation Time for another installment of "Throwback Thursday" which takes a look back at some of the historical milestones at WKYC Studios. The time machine takes us back to 1991 with a timeline of some of the biggest moments of that year at WKYC. February 28, 1991: Jennifer Auther departs WKYC-TV for KPIX-TV/San Francisco. March 25, 1991: WKYC-TV becomes the first Cleveland station to install robotic cameras and the last to begin accepting “infomercials.” The cameras were nicknamed “Mike, “Bob” and “Louie” (probably after the previous cameramen). May 1, 1991: WKYC-TV announces the resignation of Vice President and General Manager John Llewellyn and remains with the station through May 31 st . Llewellynn guided the station through the ownership transition period from NBC to Multimedia. May 1991: Linda Carson departs WKYC-TV for WWSB-TV/Sarasota. June 10, 1991: WKYC-TV names Pat Servodidio as Vice President & General Manager from...

By Frank Macek @maceknewsnation We are always on the look out for classic WKYC gems. This time, we flashback to August 8, 1994, when Channel 3 Meteorologist Amy Hasten filled in for Tom Haley on "Today in Cleveland." Here's Del and Amy... Enjoy!  

Special to the Director's Cut Blog from wkyc.com For more than 30 years, Lisa Lowry has made sure that our anchors and reporters at 3News are covering the stories that matter most to Northeast Ohioans. Thursday night, our longtime assignment editor was honored by the Press Club of Cleveland with induction into their Journalism Hall of Fame. The festivities were held at LaCentre Conference & Banquet Facility in Westlake. Lowry joins several other 3News team members who are in the Press Club of Cleveland Hall of Fame including: Leon Bibb, inducted into the Class of 1999; recipient of the 2018 Chuck Heaton Award Jim Donovan, inducted into the Class of 2009 Tom Beres, inducted into the Class of 2011 Betsy Kling, recipient of the 2015 Chuck Heaton Award Russ Mitchell, inducted into the Class of 2017 Denise Polverine, inducted into the Class of 2018 RELATED: Press Club of Cleveland honors WKYC's Leon Bibb and Denise Polverine at Hall of Fame ceremony ...

We are always on the lookout for classic WKYC gems. Let's flashback to July 26, 1996, for Channel 3 News at 11 pm with Judd Hambrick, Dawn Stensland, Amy Hasten and Ron Jantz (filling in for Jim Donovan).

We are always on the look out for classic WKYC gems. Let's flashback to February 28, 1993, for Channel 3 News at 11 pm with Tony Harris, Liz Habib, Eileen McShea and Chuck Galeti.

Check out some of the pictures of our new WKYC Studios that debuted on Sunday, September 22nd following Sunday Night Football. This is Studio A today.

Dorsena Drakeford By Frank Macek Multimedia journalist Dorsena Drakeford is joining Channel 3 News beginning in April from KGAN/KFXA-TV in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is a "skilled and aggressive reporter who currently works the crime and courts beat and is excited to expand her storytelling and to break some big stories around Cleveland," WKYC News Director Brennan Donnellan tells the Director's Cut Blog about the passion put into her work. While working at KGAN/KFXA, she reported on everything from trials that gained national attention to the well-known caucuses in the area. Besides her work as a reporter, she also filled in as news anchor for the morning and the afternoon broadcasts. Drakeford got her start in broadcast as a production assistant in central Texas, but after six months, stepped in front of the camera as the crime and courts reporter for KTXS-TV/Abilene. This gave her the opportunity to learn to shoot and edit stories that not only impacted peopl...

Danielle Serino Journalist Danielle Serino is joining the Channel 3 News team as a consumer investigative reporter and multi-skilled journalist. WKYC News Director Brennan Donnellan tells the Director's Cut Blog that Danielle will lead the station's Verify segments where "we look for transparency in how we follow a story and fact-checking, especially important in this era of fake news and social media." Serino is an Emmy Award Winning Anchor and Investigative Reporter who has worked in major news markets including Miami, Chicago and New York, where she was filling-in as an Anchor for Early Today on NBC. Most recently she worked at WOIO in Cleveland as the afternoon Anchor and Investigative Consumer Reporter. Danielle began her Television career as a Field Producer for a show called "Real Stories of the Highway Patrol" where she followed the Vice Squad in Newark, New Jersey answering 911 calls. After that, she went a more traditional route ...

Check out a time lapse from behind the scenes of our 6 pm newscast that I directed tonight. A lot happens in just 30 minutes! Thanks to David Hrvatin for putting this ditty together and Floor Director Jessica Dickard for recording it. Post by WKYC Channel 3 - Cleveland .

By Frank Macek Get ready to begin your weekend mornings a little earlier with more news and more weather updates on Channel 3 this fall as WKYC has announced it will greatly expand its Saturday and Sunday newscasts starting in September. Photo by: David Hrvatin On Saturday morning, Channel 3 will add one hour of all local news from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. leading into the Saturday edition of the "Today Show" that will continue to air from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., followed by "Channel 3 News Today" from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. The midday edition of "Channel 3 News at Noon" will continue to air as well. On Sunday morning, Channel 3 will add two hours of local news from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m., then the Sunday edition of the "Today Show" from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. and "Channel 3 News Today" from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Meanwhile, NBC's "Meet the Press" will start a half hour earlier beginning at 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., with the midday edition of "Ch...

Wale' Aliyu Look for a new face on Channel 3 News this August. Wale' Aliyu is joining WKYC as a multimedia journalist announced WKYC News Director Brennan Donnellan. Aliyu joins the Channel 3 team after spending the last four years in Ohio. Aliyu comes to Cleveland after reporting, anchoring and producing for ABC 22/FOX 45 in Dayton since 2010. Before Dayton, Aliyu started his career in Columbia, Missouri where he anchored for Newsy.com, reported for ABC 17/FOX 38 as well as KOMU-TV8. Aliyu grew up in Columbia, Missouri and graduated Cum Laude with a Convergence/Broadcast Journalism degree from the University of Missouri. Aliyu has worked several different jobs in the various newsrooms since the age of 15. In addition to broadcast, he also has experience reporting for newspaper, radio and online. Aliyu says he's comfortable telling stories on any topic but his favorite stories are ones that make an impact on people's lives. "One of the first televi...

Hilary Golston By Frank Macek WKYC-TV has announced Hilary Golston will be joining the Channel 3 News family this month as a Multi-Media Journalist and Reporter. Golston comes to northeast Ohio from Birmingham, Alabama, and NBC affiliate, WVTM-TV, where she anchored and reported as part of an Emmy and AP award winning team. "She’s very excited to help us make positive change and will now be closer to her family in Detroit," WKYC News Director Brennan Donnellan tells the Director's Cut Blog. During her time at WVTM,  Hilary pioneered “Council Extra” - a weekly segment where she brought viewers important breaking stories on Sunday night. She’s covered all sorts of political stories from complex multi-million dollar bond measure referendum to the arrest and indictment of government officials. She also reported on the worst tornado outbreak in the history of the Alabama that killed hundreds of people and destroyed thousands of homes and buildings in that state. ...

Jim Donovan Jim Donovan, long-time WKYC Sports Anchor, will join co-anchor Robin Swoboda for Channel 3 News @ 7pm. He will continue to bring Northeast Ohio the most experienced and thoughtful sports coverage at 6 and 11pm, but will expand his role into the anchor position at 7. “Jimmy is more than sports, he’s a great storyteller and an astute interviewer,” stated Brooke Spectorsky, President and General Manager of WKYC. “Channel 3 viewers across the region love his quick wit and passion for his work.” “Now it’s time for Jim to bring all that energy to a wider range of subjects,” remarked News Director Rita Andolsen. “Jim has always been a news junkie, now he’ll have the chance to expound on that knowledge and cover a lot of big issues facing Northeast Ohio.” “I’m happy to take on a new challenge,” added Donovan. “We’re going to do some interesting and different things with the 7pm show, and I look forward to working on some very special projects.” Donovan is returning to a ...

A panoramic view of the Channel 3 Newsroom thanks to a cool Android app called "Photaf" taken by multi-media journalists Barry Wolf and Matt Babb. Cool stuff! Your blogger is even spotted in the bottom picture! Click on either picture for a larger view.

If you were watching NBC programming last night, you no doubt noticed the Stanley Cup Finals went a tad long.. like into 3 overtimes long. Some speculated on the radio last night (hello Greg Brinda, WKNR) that Channel 3 News at 12:50 a.m. was taped and not done live. The answer is nope.. we all stayed until the bitter end to bring our viewers the latest news and weather. Whether we wanted to or not is another story...but we were here and we were live.