Alaska Morning News and local Anchorage KSKA listeners may notice a new voice on the radio starting this week.
Kavitha George, a former city reporter, is our new morning news host. She’s taking over the early-morning mic from Abbey Collins, who graced the airwaves for three years.
We recently asked Kavitha a few questions about herself — to share more about the reporter behind the morning voice.
Here’s what Kavitha had to say about how she got into public radio, life on the city beat and her new sleep strategy for the 5 a.m. shift.
What got you interested journalism?
I’m originally from California. I was raised on public radio and always loved writing, but I went to college thinking I would become a doctor of some kind. The day I finished my last prerequisite course for med school (shout out, biochemistry!) I decided it wasn’t the path for me and signed up for a journalism course. I loved reporting, particularly for radio. After I graduated, I interned at KTOO in Juneau, then moved to Kodiak to work in the KMXT newsroom. I arrived in Anchorage a year ago and I’m finding new things to love about this state every day.
You’ve been covering city government over the past year. What has been the most exciting story or experience you’ve had?
Covering the 2021 municipal election was really exciting. It was a very divided field with a lot of emotion and intensity from campaigns and their supporters. Having covered COVID-19 in Kodiak and Anchorage, it was also interesting to watch how the pandemic played a central role in candidates’ platforms and voters’ opinions. Based on turnout alone, Anchorage has never been so involved in a local election, so there was a lot to learn and help explain to listeners about the big issues.
You’ll be in charge of the economic report in addition to hosting the morning show. Do you have any types of economic stories you’re hoping to cover ?
Yes! The economic beat is very wide-ranging, and I’m looking forward to finding stories from all corners of our state, from economic development to business profiles to long-term trends as we start to move out of COVID-19. If you have a tip, send it my way — kgeorge@alaskapublic.org.
What’s your strategy for fitting sleep into the morning schedule? Napping? Early bedtimes? Sleeping at work? Coffee IVs?
This is a tough one! I used to get up around 5 a.m. to practice figure skating before high school, so I have some experience here. I’m definitely not a morning person, but generally some combination of napping and early bedtimes does the trick. My predecessor Abbey Collins very kindly left me a care package on my desk that included a bag of coffee beans — another must for early wake-ups.
What’s something the public might not know about hosting morning show?
You can get stage fright even without a visible audience! I think most hosts have had the experience of freezing up in front of a live microphone, even though you can’t see your listeners. It takes some practice, but ultimately it’s such a fun and rewarding job!
(You can also reach Kavitha at kgeorge@alaskapublic.org and follow her on Twitter.)
