Press Club honors local Valley journalists

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – Big honors are being awarded Wednesday evening for Valley journalists who have made a mark in journalism –two members are from the WKBN First News and WYTV 33 news team.

Photographer Nick Rich and Daybreak Len Rome will be inducted into the Youngstown Press Club Hall of Fame during a dinner and ceremony at Stambaugh Auditorium.

Len, a native of Pittsburgh, got his start in radio, working at WKJF, a Pittsburgh easy-listening station. He later landed a job on TV as an anchor at WSEE in Erie, Pa., also working at WFBC in Greenville, SC, and WAKR in Akron before coming to WYTV in Youngstown, where he has been for 40 years.

Len said he fell in love with the work at WYTV — and learned the most — as news directors here gave him the freedom to tell stories in his own style. He has always looked for ways to innovate in the position and says he doesn’t go to work every day, he “goes to fun.”

Len is known for his health segments dating back to the mid-1980’s. He believes they’ve helped the community.

“I believe so, yes, because I get feedback from time to time saying thank you for that little health segment you did or people will walk up to me on the street and say, ‘Hey that came in handy that information you gave me,'” he said.

Nick Rich was born in New Castle, Pa., and he currently resides in Neshannock Township. He received a bachelor’s degree in broadcasting and film from Temple University, where he worked on several documentaries at the university.

He began his news videographer career in 1975 at WYTV, where he worked for 32
years. Nick was instrumental at WYTV in creating an archiving system that preserved
thousands of news stories. In 2007, Nick began working at WKBN when the two
stations merged.

Over the years, he has covered many major news events in the area, including the closure of the steel mills in the 1970s and most recently the explosion of the Realty building downtow n.

He has received numerous awards during his career and has continuously worked to perfect his craft, keeping up with the latest technology. He is always willing to help his fellow employees and goes above and beyond to contribute to the team.

Also among the inductees are Mona Alexander, the recently retired news director of WFMJ; William Lewis, a retired photographer for the Tribune Chronicle and The Vindicator; and the late William Fleckenstein, co-founder and general manager of WHOT Radio.

The Youngstown Press Club also awarded two $2,000 scholarships to local college students, including WKBN First News multimedia content producer Molly Burke who is a junior at Youngstown State University.

The other scholarship recipient was Merrick Morneweck, a senior at Penn State University and native of Mercer, Pa.

Chelsea Simeon and Kristen Hephner contributed to this report.

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