She’s Brenda Danehart. You know her. You have watched her on the news, during telethons, special reports, and the annual Christmas parade in downtown Wheeling.
She’s the one with the infectious smile and the perennial positive attitude despite covering the Upper Ohio Valley for the past 39 years. Danehart, as producer, reporter, anchor, and news director, has witnessed the decline that’s taken place on both sides of the Ohio River, and she and her ever-evolving staff have covered the resulting Rust Belt region honestly.
There has been positive news, though, like the development of The Highlands and the rebirth of the Ohio Valley Mall, the economic impact of the gas and oil industries, the successes of students from private, parochial, and public schools, and wonderful work at our local animal shelters.
Brenda, who was hired by the legendary Mark Davis, has been married to her husband, Dave Gessler, for 29 years (30 in June), and her two children remain local, as well. She was a member of the first graduating class of Wheeling Park High School, and then earned her Bachelor’s Degree from West Virginia University.
She did consider leaving home for more pay and greener pastures once upon a time, but thankfully THE Brenda Danehart stayed so she could guide an honest narrative about the past, present, and future of the Upper Ohio Valley.
How exhaustive has the pandemic been when it comes to covering local news?
I think I would use the word challenging to describe the pandemic. I had two new reporters just in the door when the virus hit. They jumped into action with the rest of my talented staff, and we didn’t miss a beat. We have not only told some amazing stories, but we also have provided much needed information to our community.
We dedicated more than 10 minutes of our news time every day to cover this virus on our broadcast platform. We also expanded our news to an hour Sunday night to provide our viewers with more news. WTRF has provided several hourly specials, and this week we are part of a food bank telethon with our neighboring Ohio Television stations.
Next week we are part of a one-hour live broadcast called, ‘’Opening West Virginia.” On our digital platform we reached 1.3 million pageviews at the height of the pandemic. WTRF started up a restaurant page so our viewers could support local businesses. It’s called Restaurants to the Rescue. We have three daily Coronavirus streams to provide the very latest information on the virus, and we provide daily updates from President Trump, W.Va. Gov. Jim Justice, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.
How has the crisis been a good teaching tool for you when it comes to your younger reporters?
There was no playbook for covering this massive story, even for our veterans, but what has come out of this will most likely change how television stations do interviews. Facetime, Skype , and Zoom meetings are all being used on a daily basis, and they are working really well for us. Our younger reporters excel at this and didn’t really have to be shown how to use the social tools.
They already knew how to use them which was a huge bonus. Nexstar, our parent company, has been a blessing to us here at WTRF, providing us with great resources. We have a D.C. bureau that provides us with daily news, and we also have a statehouse reporter in Ohio and a political reporter in West Virginia.
Why have you decided to remain in Wheeling and at WTRF for such an extended time as a reporter, anchor, and news director?
I started out in my own hometown and only one time did I think about trying to get a job in a larger market. But I weighed leaving my family, and now I know I made the best choice for me. I got to spend all of my career in my hometown with the family and people I love. That really means a lot to me, especially since I recently lost my mom. You can’t get that precious time back that I was able to spend with both my mom and dad.
What “news” are you looking forward to the most when the pandemic subsides to the point to where life can be as normal as it can be?
The wonderful community stories that we do almost every day. Also covering the events when they eventually start back up again that support our agencies. So many of these fundraisers have been cancelled, so now it’s our job to hopefully help these agencies and businesses right here in the Upper Ohio Valley.
In your opinion, what is the best part and the worst part of being a media member in the Upper Ohio Valley?
Easy question on the best part and that’s our people. I am definitely a people person, and I love going to events and seeing everyone. We have so many wonderful festivals and fundraisers every weekend. Obviously, there’s no bad part to my job, or I wouldn’t have stayed in the business 39 years and counting. Although it can be a stressful job, and sometimes there is little down time, but I am on call seven days a week.
