Rita Williams

Veteran KTVU reporter Rita Williams received the Chris Harris Reporter of the Year Award at the AP Television and Radio Association’s 64th annual Mark Twain Awards in Anaheim on Saturday. The winner of numerous Emmys during her 30 years at Channel 2, she is known for her digging as a reporter. She faced tough competition in the category. Also nominated were Julie Watts of KPIX and John Lobertini, a former PIXer now at KTXL Fox 40 in Sacramento.

Other Bay Area TV winners included:

• Frank Somerville, Julie Haener of KTVU for Best Anchor or Anchor Team.

• Thuy Vu of CBS5, who tied in the best news writing category with Julio Cesar Ortiz of KMEX in Los Angeles.

• Dennis O’Donnell, Kim Coyle, Brian Stittes, Anthony Catchatoorian, Gregg Welk of CBS5 for Best Sports Segment.

• Roberta Gonzales of CBS5 for Best Weather Segment.

• Darren Alan Zulberti, Michael Kelly, Heather Yugo, Julie Haener, Frank Somerville of KTVU for Best Live Coverage of a News Event.

• Julie Watts, Jennifer Casillan of CBS5 for Best Spot News Story for their coverage of a Feb. 17 plane crash in East Palo Alto that killed three people.

• Anna Werner, Abigail Sterling, Gerard Watson, Greg Marasso of CBS5 for Best Investigative Reporting for a story titled “Pupils or Pawns?”

• Anna Werner, Abigail Sterling, Gerard Watson, Greg Marasso of CBS5, who tied for Best Coverage of an Ongoing Story (Smart Meters) with KTVW Phoenix.

• Thuy Vu, Vince Garrido, Greg Marasso, Gerard Watson, Don Fernandez, Sandy Lee, Julie Montes of CBS5 tied for Best Special Program (“Vietnam Revisited”) with KNBC Los Angeles.

• Rita Williams, Shannon Oliver, Ron Acker, Anne Onate, Cristina Gastelu of KTVU for Best Serious Feature (“ID Theft”).

• Julie Watts of CBS5 for Best Light Feature (“Outsourced: Silicon Valley Students in India”).

• Dean C. Smith of KGO-TV for Best Videography of Hard News.

• Abe Mendoza of KGO-TV for Best Videography of Sports.

• Angela Baray, Todd Miyazawa of KNTV NBC Bay Area for Best Assignment Team/Live Breaking News (“San Bruno Explosion”).

• “CBS5 Eyewitness News at 11” and Producer Kristine Flores for Best News Broadcast-30 minutes.

• “CBS5 Eyewitness News at 5” and Producer Wilson Walker for Best News Broadcast-60 minutes.

In the radio competition:

• Doug Sovern of KCBS received the Pat Davis Radio Reporter of the Year

• Sovern also won the Bill Stout Award for Enterprise Reporting (“Aftershock: The Ongoing Crisis in Haiti”).

• Hal Ramey, Steve Bitker and John Madden of KCBS for Best Sports Segment.

• Bret Burkhart, Chris Brecher, Laura Podolak, Sandra Firpo, Nicole Grigg, Terry Conway, Katy Leaver, Stan Burford, Gary Hansen, Jenna Lane, Rob Artigo of KGO-AM for Best Live Coverage of a News Event (San Bruno Explosion).

• Holly Quan of KCBS for Best Special Program (“After the Fire”).

• Doug Sovern of KCBS for Best Serious Feature (“Fire Hero”)

• Bret Burkhart and the KGO Radio News Team for Best Use of Sound-Feature (“Believe”)

• Bret Burkhart, Chris Brecher, Laura Podolak, Sandra Firpo of KGO for Best News Broadcast More Than 15 Minutes (“The KGO 5 O’clock News”)

• Curtiss Kim of KSRO Santa Rosa for Best Radio Serious Feature in the smaller market competition (“North Bay Trails: Homeward Bound”)

In the Website division, CBSSanFrancisco.com won the award for Best Use of News Website and the same entry won in the TV category of Best Use of a News Website. KGO-AM won Best News Promo.