The role of a television news reporter has a reputation for being a tough career. Tight deadlines, constant pressure and the chance of having to get on air at any given moment are known for creating an intense environment — and that’s not even when your job is to interview the president.
Mike Emanuel, Fox News’ chief Washington correspondent and a WHS alum, navigates this lifestyle every day. Having spent over 27 years at one of America’s largest news stations, he’s been called in at all hours to cover some of the nation’s biggest stories, from Osama bin Laden’s assassination to former President Joe Biden dropping out of the 2024 presidential race.
On Jan. 15, however, Emanuel put his ever-buzzing phone aside and returned to his hometown to take on the role of the interviewee. As part of the Rialto Center for Creativity’s Spotlight Series, he visited the repurposed theater to speak to residents about his career as a reporter and how his Westfield origins helped to shape that career.
Emanuel noted that the influence of his “news junkie” parents led him to become interested in reporting at a young age, recalling waking up to three newspapers in the driveway daily. However, it was when he began to write for Hi’s Eye at WHS that his interest in journalism truly took flight. “[Hi’s Eye] was a phenomenal training ground for my future career in journalism, all the way up to my professional endeavors on television,” said Emanuel.
This education and experience carried him through college, where he spent his time as a sports reporter for the Rutgers radio station. However, he became increasingly interested in covering hard news, and when he was suddenly offered a job at a television station in Midland-Odessa, Texas, he seized the opportunity.
“I thought, ‘If I hate it, or I’m not good, then at least I’ll know I gave it my shot,’” he said. “Well, I did, and I just got better and better.”
Two events would define his later career: the founding of Fox News and the opportunity to cover George W. Bush during the Texas governor’s race. He never imagined he would follow Bush to the presidency, and recalled his peers questioning his choice to join Fox back when it was just “another cable start-up.” However, it was these coincidences that would place him alongside American presidents across the globe, from the pope’s private library to war zones in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Emanuel recognizes that his career comes with an intense lifestyle, and that it can be hard to find time to decompress. Still, he argued that this shouldn’t deter a dedicated journalist. “If you have the dream of witnessing history and writing the first draft of it, you should do it,” said Emanuel. “It’s a tough business, but if you love it, it feels like you’re not working at all.”
With a stunning history of journalistic success, it’s clear that Emanuel is living this dream daily.