cover story: a familiar face
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ne of of Hamilton’s Hamilton’s top ne television broadcasters television didn’t start start out out with stars didn’t inher hereyes. eyes. in Veteran CH reporter and on-air personality Annette Hamm was just following her Dad’s advice. “In Grade 13, I applied to three universities for psychology,” says Hamm, “but my Dad suggested I look at a college course – something with a job at the end of it. He asked me what my job would be graduating from psychology, and I really didn’t know.” And so she hatched a new plan. Annette loved English courses in high school, so the Broadcast Journalism program at Mohawk College immediately caught her eye. She was later accepted to all three of the universities she applied to, but opted instead to stay close to her Langton, Ontario, roots, pursuing her studies in what would become her adopted hometown of Hamilton. These days, Hamm lives on the Hamilton Mountain with her husband, fellow Mohawk alumnus Daniel Smith, and their two cats, Emma and Rudy. For many Hamiltonians, she is half of the trusted team that starts each weekday on CH Morning Live, which Hamm cohosts with fellow anchor Bob Cowan. Since making her move to the anchor desk less than one year ago, Hamm might seem like a new face to some fans of the show. But she’s actually a CH veteran with roots extending back to her early college days in the mid-eighties. In fact, her first foray into the professional newsroom came a few months into her studies. “CH at that time hired more parttime students,” Hamm remembers. “In the middle of our second semester, our instructor came in looking for parttime writers at the station.” Hamm jumped at the chance, and was brought on board. Her talents shone early on, and before her first year at Mohawk was through, she had landed a job at CH that
lasted through the summer. It was the beginning of her future career. Hamm commends Mohawk for preparing her with skills she could put to the test immediately. The Broadcast Journalism program’s first-year concentration on radio broadcasting and second-year focus on television production allowed her to first build her skills as a news writer, then learn the tricks of the trade that would get her noticed as a fresh-faced reporter. A year later, with Mohawk’s Broadcast
her. When she moved to the anchor desk, Hamm found it tough to draw herself away from the constant flow of information. So much so, that the sound of static still makes her ears perk up. “What I liked best about being a beat reporter was not having a job where you’re doing the same thing all day,” laughs Hamm. “Beat reporting is almost like job shadowing. You’re meeting people in different life and work conditions, and you’re doing a little bit of what they do.” A case in point was
Hamm might seem like a new face to some fans of the show, but she’s actually a CH veteran with roots extending back to her early college days in the mid-eighties. Journalism diploma to her credit, Hamm became a dedicated member of the CH news team. In the years since her on-air debut, Hamm has covered everything from general assignment to the environmental beat. As a crime reporter, she got used to catching the latest buzz on a police scanner she carried around with
one of her favourite assignments back in 2003, when she shipped off to the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, to profile a local police officer training with the bureau’s international program. Hamm has always loved the adrenaline rush of being a reporter. But even as a CH Morning Live co-host, she is still privy to the excitement of breaking news.
M O H AW K C O L L E G E A L U M N I ASSOCIATION : alumni.mohawkcollege.ca
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