where is frank somerville
Longtime KTVU anchor Frank Somerville, who's been off the air since being suspended by management in September over a disagreement about the coverage of the Gabby Petito case, is speaking out and telling the press that he doesn't expect he'll be back at the station and also, no one from the station or Fox has even bothered contacting him. Get all the latest & greatest posts delivered straight to your inbox, Frank Somerville Speaks, Says He's Likely Out at KTVU, fairly strange Memorial Day Weekend broadcast, just took up a local missing-persons case, Anchorman Frank Somerville's Future at KTVU In Doubt As Rumors Swirl About High Drama In the Newsroom, Day Around the Bay: San Jose Man Arrested In Connection With PG&E Transformer Explosions, Berkeley Poised to Close Famed Anthropology Library, Angry Students In Full Occupy Mode, The SFPD Brags About Busting Johns Seeking Sex Workers on Capp Street. Info stolen in Oakland ransomware attack set to be released I would give anything to work there. KTVU anchor Frank Somerville, one of the most recognizable of the Bay Area's news personalities having been on the air at KTVU since 1991, was pulled from a Sunday broadcast and has not returned . Somerville has had a tumultuous year. An ABC News report,citing statistics from the FBIs National Crime Information Center stated that at the end of 2020, the FBI had more than 89,000 active missing person cases, and 45 percent of those were people of color. Frank Somerville - Facebook "I feel like a total idiot," Somerville allegedly said. According to station sources, Somerville, 63, has been "suspended indefinitely" by Channel 2 management after a disagreement with news director Amber Eikel over coverage of the Gabby Petito. Frank Somerville has spoken out for the first time since his Dec. 30 arrest for a suspected DUI. Theylearned that Somerville had been driving a 2014 Porsche east on West Grand when he rear-ended an Audi stopped at the intersection. NEW - 21 HRS AGO. Shortly before the 5 p.m. broadcast, Eikel told Somerville she planned to cut the tag after newsroom editors raised concerns. Federal jury finds Bay Area man guilty in string of East Bay bank robberies When an officer-administered field sobriety test showed signs of impairment, Somerville consented to an alcohol screening test; he blew two tests, registering .239 and .219 blood-alcohol levels, according to the statement. MSNBC host Joy Reiddiscussed the Gabby Petito case on her showon September 20. He took an indefinite leave of absence in June following a broadcast of the TheTenO'ClockNewsonKTVU in which he slurred lines and left mid-broadcast, resulting in speculation over his health and well-being. He works out and practices the Israeli martial art of Krav Maga.[20]. He said the couple spend their "together time" at the gym and that the pair "encourage each otherto keep pushing.". He noted that his contract is up in January, so it seems like the management is just waiting that out. He said it was deeply concerning that KTVU wasnt even willing to have a conversation about media coverage when it serves the Bay Areas diverse viewers. And I guess thats the issue, isnt it?. ContactGeorge Kelly at 408-859-5180. 42 Portfolio is located in Union Square, Somerville. A station spokesperson could not be reached as of Friday evening, and Eikel declined to comment. He returned in August, but a month after, was suspended permanently following turmoil over the coverage of Gabby Petito, the missing van-lifer who was killed by her fiance Brian Laundrie in September. This past week, Mornings On 2 anchor Mike Mibach has been in Somervilles chair, including on Thursday nights newscasts at 5 and 6 p.m. when he simply introduced himself: Im Mike Mibach., Somerville said his health was great, a point he also made in a photo he shared on Instagram with his 5,100 followers this week. [citation needed] He attended Berkeley High School, graduating in 1976. In interviews this week, Somerville declined to say anything more about his departure from KTVU, his arrest or his plans. According to station sources, Somerville, 63, has been "suspended indefinitely" by Channel 2 management after a disagreement with news director Amber Eikel over coverage of the Gabby Petito. Sources told the outlet that Somerville was informed by station management the next day that he was being suspended. Frank Somervilles 31-year career at KTVU, where his nightly anchoring duties made him one of the Bay Areas most beloved TV news personalities, officially came to an end Friday, as his contract expired and the station opted to not bring him back. Former SF anchor Frank Somerville publicly opens up about arrest, KTVU exit He also was off the air for much of last summer following a now-infamous May 30, 2021 newscast, when he repeatedly slurred and stumbled over his words and appeared to have trouble reading off the teleprompter. Somerville did not reply to repeated efforts to contact him, nor did representatives from Fox News, who said last month only that the anchor had been suspended pending further review. No one at KTVU, including news director Amber Eikel, would speak on the record. Reid said. KTVU's "Ten O'Clock News" has long held the top spot for the Bay Area's highest rated news broadcast. In November, Somerville insisted he was right to push for the commentary, but he publicly apologized for all the drama because of the way it affected people who work at the station. That's a shivering duck sheltering a puppy with its wings. In related news, CNN is reckoning with its Petito coverage and just took up a local missing-persons case involving Arianna Fitts, a Bay Area girl who is black, and who went missing in 2016 at the age of 2. He added that the decision was made long before December, when the alleged DUI took place. Somerville spoke this morning to local media hound Rich Lieberman who said Somerville was speaking to him exclusively but very quickly Somerville gave quotes to the Mercury News and the Chronicle saying that he's all but certain he won't ever be at the anchor desk again at KTVU. He was named as a person of interest in the case, and his remains were found in Florida last week. Crime and Public Safety | Reynolds said Somerville may have been well-intentioned, and that he certainly seems passionate about fairness in coverage. After the initial collision, the driver of the Audi got out of their vehicle and Somerville, in his Porsche, allegedly pushed the Audi across the intersection of Broadway and West Grand Avenue until the Audi hit a pole on the southwest corner of the intersection, Windham's statement said. Following a car crash late last December, embattled Bay Areareporter Frank Somerville now faces two DUI charges. This latest incident, coming just six weeks after Somervilles return to the anchor desk, will undoubtedly trigger speculation about his future with the station. In an interview with the Bay Area News Group published Friday, the celebrated former KTVU anchor confirmed that his former employer will not re-sign him and allegedly not because of his arrest. The City of San Leandro also issued an official proclamation honoring him for speaking out about missing women of color and setting an example of strength and equity to our community and those worldwide.. Somervilles last newscast for KTVU was on Sept. 21. 4ba. Somerville, who has an adopted black daughter, reportedly pushed back after the tagline was refused. He was named after his father's childhood friend, Frank Patty, and his paternal grandfather, William Somerville. Who is Frank Somerville? Frank Somerville - Biography - IMDb Somerville was booked into Santa Rita Jail in Dublin after his arrest, then released with a citation to appear in court. KTVU again removes Frank Somerville from the air Somervilles arrest came after he crashed his Porsche into another car in a downtown intersection in an accident caught on video. It should have been much more about stepping into the journalism and giving respect and honor to the issue and people youre purporting to be in service of.. The request was denied by KTVU news director Amber Eikel, who called the tagline inappropriate, a source told SFGATE in September, leading to criticism from the Oakland chapter of the NAACP. Who is Frank Somerville's wife? | The US Sun 2. ", "My guess is that Im not coming back to Channel 2, Somerville tells the Chronicle. Crime and Public Safety | Frank Celeste, Gibson Sotheby's International Realty. Sources at the station said news director Amber Eikel and editors didnt think Somervilles proposed tag, a brief closing the story, was an appropriate way to cover the issue and would blur the lines between an anchor delivering a straight news story and offering editorial commentary. TV Streaming | The case of Gabby has sparked a national outcry as her fianc Brian Laundrie continues to evade authorities. Franqueville, Somme - Wikipedia She has previously reported or edited for Bay Area news and lifestyle publications, including Walnut Creek Patch, and Diablo, Oakland and Alameda magazines, as well as The Nation in Bangkok, Thailand and The Economist. Last fall, he told this news organization that he anticipated his days anchoring at KTVU were over after he was suspended in September for an off-air dispute about the coverage of the Gabby Petito case. Somerville wanted the tag to address domestic violence and the medias tendency to overlook reports about missing and slain women of color, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, which obtained a copy of Somervilles original tag. Silence irks activists, stirs questions about suspension. Frank Somerville says he believes he won't be coming back to KTVU Get all the latest & greatest posts delivered straight to your inbox, Longtime Bay Area Anchor Frank Somerville Off Air Since Slurred-Speech Broadcast On Sunday, AdWeek's TVSpy blog is covering his disappearance, fake names of the pilots of Asiana Airlines Flight 214, Day Around the Bay: San Jose Man Arrested In Connection With PG&E Transformer Explosions, Berkeley Poised to Close Famed Anthropology Library, Angry Students In Full Occupy Mode, The SFPD Brags About Busting Johns Seeking Sex Workers on Capp Street. Martha Ross is a Bay Area News Group features writer for The Mercury News and East Bay Times who covers everything and anything related to popular culture, society, health, womens issues and families. He was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, booked into Santa Rita Jail on that charge and later released with a citation to appear. KTVU anchor Frank Somerville anchors the five o'clock news at the KTVU studio on Tuesday, May 5, 2009, in Oakland, Calif. It's been one year since Somerville replaced longtime anchor Dennis . So, I'm assuming I've done my last newscast," Somerville said. Elevation. Before moving to Frank's current city of Somerville, MA, Frank lived in Bolton MA.In the past, Frank has also been known as Frank J Bacci. Jurors hopelessly deadlocked in Bay Point murder trial, mistrial declared Earlier this year, Somerville disappeared from the air without explanation after a fairly strange Memorial Day Weekend broadcast in which he was slurring words and seemed unable to read the teleprompter. He believes that his automotive collision that happened the month before did not play a role, instead, he believes management had already decided to cut him loose months earlier. Ive given my heart and soul to Channel 2. Reportedly, Somerville butted heads with KTVU News Director Amber Eikel over the addition of this "tag" that Somerville wanted to say on air, with Eikel saying that the topic deserved separate coverage at a later date. Somerville displayed symptoms of driving under the influence of alcohol, with bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from his person. After a field sobriety test showed signs of impairment, the documents said, two separate breathalyzer tests found that Somerville had blood alcohol levels of 0.239% and 0.219%. After a brief return, he was suspended indefinitely by KTVU management following a dispute over coverage of the Gabby Petito missing person and homicide case. The case of Gabby has sparked a national outcry as her fianc Brian Laundrie continues to evade authorities. Somerville, who has a mixed-race daughter, wanted to make a statement at the end of a segment regarding "missing white woman syndrome," a term coined by the late Gwen Ifill about American media's obsession with the disappearance of young, pretty Caucasian women, when very little national attention is given to the thousands of people of color who go missing every year. Frank Somerville Speaks, Says He's Likely Out at KTVU - SFist More than a month after Frank Somerville was suspended from KTVU, the popular anchor remains off the air with no word from either him or the station about if or when he might return. Joshua Bote is the tech editor at SFGATE. OAKLAND The Alameda County District Attorneys Office has filed two misdemeanor charges against former KTVU news anchor Frank Somerville in connection with his arrest late last year on suspicion of driving under the influence, authorities said. [10] In November 2021, he said in an interview with the Bay Area News Group that KTVU had not contacted him and that "All indications are that Im never going to anchor at Channel 2 again. Since Somervilles suspension, two rallies have been held outside the KTVU studios in Jack London Square on Oct. 2 and and Oct. 12, both sparked by Somervilles reported desire to address disparities in media coverage of White crime victims like Petito versus women of color. As per his date of birth, his birth sign is Pisces. Frank Somerville says he's done at KTVU, apologizes to newsroom for As first reported by the Mercury News on Thursday, the venerated KTVU broadcaster faces two misdemeanor charges from the Alameda County District Attorneys Office one for driving under the influence of alcohol and a second for driving with a blood alcohol level of over 0.08% with potentially enhanced penalties because his BAC was over 0.15%. After the collision, the Audis driver managed to get out of their car, according to the statement, but Somerville kept driving east on West Grand, pushing the Audi across the intersectionuntil it hit a pole on the southwest corner. They had told me long before that.. Longtime KTVU anchor Frank Somerville shared a Facebook post Saturday reflecting on his arrest and his termination from KTVU nearly a year later. Thats just a guess. 80346 /80620. The collision took place near the intersection of Grand Avenue and Broadway Street just after 7:45 p.m. Dec. 31, 2021, Oakland police said at the time. "Frank Somerville to replace Dennis Richmond", "KTVU's Somerville settling in as Richmond's replacement", "Asiana: Anchor says KTVU never sounded-out racist pilot names", "KTVU anchor Somerville to take time away after slurred newscast", "Frank Somerville returns to KTVU after two months of leave", "Frank Somerville suspension: How the dispute over 'Gabby' Petito coverage unfolded at KTVU", "Frank Somerville says he's done at KTVU, apologizes to newsroom for 'drama', "Frank Somerville arrested for suspected DUI after crash", "Frank Somerville says KTVU wouldn't re-sign him: 'I am done', "Frank Somerville publicly opens up about arrest, KTVU exit", "Former KTVU Anchor Frank Somerville Speaks Publicly About Addiction Issues", "Image of Bay Area news anchor doing his daughter's hair touches people all over country | The Mommy Files | an SFGate.com blog", "Tender photo of TV anchor un-braiding daughter's hair goes viral", "A white dad does his black daughter's hair, and the Internet smiles", "10 Questions for Frank Somerville; Up Close and Personal with KTVU's Top Dog; And Something that may Surprise You", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Frank_Somerville&oldid=1133399814, American television reporters and correspondents, Berkeley High School (Berkeley, California) alumni, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2021, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 13 January 2023, at 16:12. Somervilles Bay Area roots helped make him popular with viewers. Meanwhile, Oakland police are awaiting the results of blood tests before turning the case over to Alameda County prosecutors to decide whether to file charges. The New York-born Petito was slain during a cross-country van trip with her fiance, Brian Laundrie. The FBI has issued an arrest warrant for Brian Laundrie, Petitos 23-year-old fianc. I think its probably time to (let them know) were still listening and waiting, Holland said. This was Somervilles second suspension in a tumultuous year. Venerated KTVU anchor Frank Somerville will be 'taking time - SFGATE Somerville was hospitalized shortly after the incident and was booked at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. The months-long saga surrounding longtime KTVU anchor Frank Somerville may have finally reached its conclusion. The longtime news anchor faced a rocky 2021. Following Somervilles suspension, two rallies were held outside the KTVU studios in Jack London Square in October, both sparked by his reported desire to address disparities in media coverage of White crime victims like Petito versus women of color. According to Windham's statement, Somerville showed symptoms of being under the influence of alcohol when officers reached him. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Wheres Frank Somerville? Somerville was off the air for more than nine weeks before returning in August to Channel 2s The Ten OClock News without addressing his unusual absence. Since then, Fox and station management have refused to publicly speak to the issue. He has been taking many steps to address the circumstances that led to this case, including attending meetings and working on himself so that nothing like this ever happens again, Dugan said. This property is currently available for sale and was listed by MLS PIN on Mar . Frank Somerville Wife, Family, Daughter, House, Bio & Net Worth 42 Portfolio, Somerville, MA 02143 is a 9 bedroom, 18 bathroom, 15,789 sqft multi-family built in 1900. Frank Somerville, a veteran TV newscaster suspended from KTVU following a dispute over coverage of the Gabby Petito homicide case, said Tuesday that he believes he is not returning to the station . Martha Ross is a Bay Area News Group features writer for The Mercury News and East Bay Times who covers everything and anything related to popular culture, society, health, womens issues and families. I think its really indicative of the silencing and invisibility of Black and brown people, said Galvis, whose group worked with Restoring Justice for Indigenous Peoples to organize the rally. While Somerville was attending San Francisco State University in 1981, he interned at KTVU. Update: A spokesperson for Fox tells the Mercury News, "We can confirm Frank is taking time away from the desk to focus on his health and we welcome his return when he is ready.". On Wednesday night's 6 o'clock broadcast, Heather Holmes anchored the show with Andre Senior, saying at the top of the hour, "Frank and Julie are off tonight.". Joshua Bote is the tech editor at SFGATE. The public silence from Channel 2 and Fox, its parent network, has fueled community frustration over the ostensible reason he was suspended a reported dispute over his push to add a brief commentary on racial inequity to the end of a straight-news story about the disappearance of social media influencer Gabby Petito, whose case had attracted a firestorm of media coverage.