» Dale Hoffman
» Tom Konvicka
» Kari Hall
» Sarah Black
» Mark Hamblen
» Sharief Ishaq
» Elizabeth Hill
» Leigh Culbert
» Mike Magnoli
» Joel Massey
» Bryant Ferguson
» Ashleigh Galliano
» Tamara Carter
» Chris Blalock
» Sherman Desselle
Elizabeth Hill
Sports Anchor.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Lizzie is originally from Houston, TX. She graduated in May of 2008 with a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication from LSU’s Manship School of Communication. Lizzie landed a job last December as Sports Director for KWBJ-Channel 22 in Morgan City, LA. While in Morgan City, she covered all of the local high school sports in addition to LSU, the Saints and the Hornets.
Lizzie has been working toward a career in sports broadcasting since high school. She says she wasn’t exactly athletically gifted growing up, but always liked being around sports and was a cheerleader all four years of high school. She says LSU was a perfect fit for her and an excellent environment for cultivating an interest in sports journalism. Lizzie worked for LSU’s student produced channel TigerTV as an anchor and reporter for a 30 minute live sports program called “Sports Showtime.” She interned with the sports department at WAFB in Baton Rouge and is grateful for the real world experience she gained there.
When she’s not working, Lizzie enjoys watching any live sport in person, traveling, working out, waterskiing, spending time with friends and family and relaxing. She is a devoted LSU Tiger fan and also roots for the Texas Longhorns…unless they’re playing the Tigers, of course. Lizzie’s favorite sports are football and baseball.
Keith Weiss
News Director.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Keith Weiss is the News Director at KALB News Channel 5 and CBS 2.
Keith is no stranger to Louisiana, as he is a former resident of Bossier Parish. During that time, Keith worked at KSLA, the CBS affiliate in Shreveport.
Most recently, Keith worked as an Executive Producer and News Planning Manager for KXAS, the NBC affiliate in Dallas-Fort Worth.
Keith’s career in broadcast journalism spans nearly 20 years. It all started with an unpaid internship at a television station in West Palm Beach, Florida.
In addition to his work in Shreveport and Dallas, Keith has also worked at television newsrooms in Tampa, Charlotte, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, and Augusta, Georgia.
Keith says he has been fortunate to gain valuable insight and experience developing news content, by working in a wide variety of communities.
Keith is looking forward to using that knowledge to shape and guide news coverage here at KALB News Channel 5 and CBS 2 News.
Kari Hall
Meteorologist.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Kari Hall joined Storm Team 5 in September 2009. Although she was born in Louisville, Kentucky, Kari is no stranger to Louisiana weather. For four years she worked as weekend meteorologist for KATC – TV3 in Lafayette before heading up I-49 to work Jambalaya and the Midday shows.
Kari has a B.S. in Geosciences with an emphasis in Broadcast Meteorology from Mississippi State University and is a member of the National Weather Association and the American Meteorological Society. She moved to the Gulf coast just in time to forecast Hurricanes Katrina and Rita during the 2005 hurricane season.
When Kari is not tracking the weather she enjoys spending time with her husband, Kinnane, and her Yorkie, NaNa. She loves traveling, being outdoors, and bike riding.
Sherman Desselle
Videographer/Reporter.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Sherman Desselle is no stranger to the Alexandria area. He is a graduate of Peabody Magnet High School and later of Northwestern State University in Natchitoches in Vocal Music Performance. “I never thought that I would be a reporter…and in my home town!” Sherman says.
He was offered a position as a part-time videographer in June of 2008, and by the end of the year, Sherman enjoyed the experience of being on both sides of the camera. By July of 2009, he was made our “One Man Band” reporter, covering the weekend news and NSU sports. He loves the idea of always learning new things and generating the story from start to finish. He would like to thank Michelle Godard and his past and present colleagues for his first on-air experience and the helpful advice.
When Sherman is away from the station, he performs with his band mates in the Cenla area, and has been seen on stage with the City Park Players. He also enjoys going to concerts, traveling, and attending NSU, LSU, and New Orleans Saints games.
Chris Blalock
Photographer.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Mark Hamblen
Director - Sports.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
A Tennessee native, Mark Hamblen was raised in Memphis. After graduating from Memphis State University in 1980, Mark joined the KALB-TV News staff as a News/Sports reporter in 1981. He became Newschannel 5’s Sports Director in 1984, and has since won a number of Associated Press awards for his work.
His job responsibilities include over-seeing the operation of the Sports Department on a daily basis, and anchoring the 6 & 10 o’clock sportscasts.
The father of three daughters, Mark enjoys spending time with his family. His hobbies include playing basketball, softball, and watching movies.
Ashleigh Galliano
Producer - Jambalaya.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Ashleigh was born and raised in Denham Springs, LA. She joined the News Channel Five Team as the morning show producer for Jambalaya in June 2007 after graduating from Louisiana College in May 2007 with a degree in Media Communications.
She says she knew she wanted to pursue a profession in the news business back in the eighth grade during a career awareness lesson.
She loves all the excitement that the business has to offer.
When she is not getting up early in the morning to come to work, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends and planning her upcoming wedding to her fiance, James.
Dale Hoffman
News - Anchor/Reporter.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Dale was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He has degrees in Broadcast Journalism and Aerospace Studies from Oklahoma State University.
He also earned an Officer Commission in the Air Force. After flight training and duty at Mather Air Force Base in California, he started his broadcast career as a news photograher in Ohio.
He has more than 25 years of experience in all aspects of broadcast news and has anchored and produced newscasts at stations from coast to coast.
Dale anchors the NewsChannel 5, 6 and 10 newscast plus the CBS 5:30pm newscast as well.
He joined News Channel 5 in the summer of 2001 after many years on the air in Shreveport.
Dale is a pilot, he enjoys aviation-related hobbies and non-fiction literature. He especially anticipates his yearly ski vacation in Idaho.
Summer and fall find him enjoying visits to the quaint nautical town of Vermilion, Ohio.
Tom Konvicka
Weather - Chief Meteorologist.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Tom began work at News Channel 5 in November, 1984. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and geosciences in 1981 from Texas Tech University in Lubbock. One year of graduate study in atmospheric sciences followed in 1981-82.
His specializations include weather forecasting, severe local storms, and tropical cyclones and he holds professional membership in the American Meteorological Society.
Tom is also a well-published author who has written materials for the American Meteorological Society, the American Geophysical Union, Yankee Publishing, the Greenwood Group, and several others.
He has held full member status in the Author’s Guild since 2002. He also serves an an adjunct instructor at Louisiana College in Pineville. He is a member of the Pineville Kiwanis Club and is an ordained Southern Baptist deacon.
Tom lives in Pineville with his wife Tronda. They have a son (Zane) who is in the LSU system and a daughter (Sharisse) who attends McNeese State in Lake Charles.
Sharief Ishaq
Sports - Weekend Anchor/Sports Reporter.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Sharief was born in Baton Rouge, LA in 1982 and he lived in New Orleans, LA until graduating from high school (Archbishop Shaw) in 2000… Sharief left New Orleans for Baton Rouge in 2000… He graduated from LSU in 2005 with a Bachelors degree in Broadcast Journalism..
He had a hard time finding an on air sports job after graduating so he took a part time photographer job with WAFB-TV in Baton Rouge.. While he was there he worked on his resume tape all the time, but Sharief didnt do it alone he had help from Jacques Doucet, Steve Schneider, and James Verrett, the sports guys.. they taught him everything that he didn’t learn at his internship or through experience..
Finally Jacques Doucet helped Sharief find a job at KALB-TV in Alexandria, Louisiana in July 2007 and he’s been here since then… The job is awesome and Sharief enjoys working with everyone..
Sharief would like to thank Mark Hamblen, Michele Godard, and Les Golmon for giving him his first on air opportunity.. He would also like to thank everyone who got him to this point of his life but it’s not over… because from here Sharief would love to make his next stop in Tallahassee, Florida to cover the Florida State Seminoles, then Austin, Texas because of the Texas Longhorns (Hook em) and then of course ESPN.. “Most sportscasters want to be there and if they say they don’t then they’re kidding themselves… because ESPN is the Mecca of sports” says Sharief.
Things Sharief likes to do.. Well… watch sports all day. How could Sharief not??? He’s been doing it since he was 10 years old that’s why he’s in the business…
Teams Sharief likes to follow… ummmmm, in college its no secret… LSU Tigers, Texas Longhorns, and Florida State Seminoles.. NFL he likes the Atlanta Falcons and Tennessee Titans but not so much the team its more of Vince Young.. MLB Sharief’s a huge Boston Red Sox fan and he likes the Oakland A’s and Chicago Cubs.. NBA he grew up watching MJ and the Chicago Bulls and Sharief loves the Cleveland Cavaliers because of his all time favorite athlete LeBron James, the single most dominant athlete today.
Other than sports he likes to workout and just go out with my friends. That’s pretty much it.
Joel Massey
News - Reporter.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Joel Massey joined the News Channel 5 team January of 2007. He grew up in Central Louisiana in the little town of Pollock.
After graduating from Grace Christian School in Alexandria, Joel attended Louisiana College where he earned a bachelor’s degree in media communications.
He taught elementary special education in Rapides and Ascension Parishes after being alternately certified.
In August 2006 he earned a graduate degree in mass communication from LSU. While in school at LSU, Joel worked at WAFB-TV in Baton Rouge as a production assistant.
When he is not reporting Joel loves spending time with his family, his wife Sarah and his daughter Chloe, born March 5, 2007.
Mike Magnoli
News - Reporter.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Mike joined News Channel 5 in August of 2007. He is a general assignment reporter covering a wide range of topics from crime to human interest, but he especially likes to investigate, dig deep, and break the big news in the Cenla area. Though he prefers the rush of being in the field and working on deadline, Mike can also be seen a few days a week anchoring Midday. Mike has been recognized by the Louisiana Associated Press as a top ranked Breaking News reporter and his 2008 special series on Cold Case Murders received an AP award in the category for Best Investigative Journalism.
Bryant Ferguson
Photojournalist.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Bryant came to KALB in August of 2005 just before Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast. This wasn’t his first experience with hurricanes though. Before moving to Central Louisiana, he spent 8 years in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. During his stay he covered at least 6 storms and their aftermath.
Bryant grew up in the Sandhills of North Carolina and attended The University of North Carolina at Pembroke. During his career he has covered countless news stories and been fortunate enough to meet some wonderful people along the way.
One story that he will always remember is when the tour busses carrying people away from flood ravaged New Orleans pulled into a local rest stop, their first stop since leaving the city. As they got off the busses he saw men, women, and children who didn’t have any shoes on and had been in the same clothes for days. They quickly rushed to tables that were filled with clothes and toys that local people had dropped off for them. At that point the magnitude of what had happened on the Gulf Coast really hit home.
Tamara Carter
Producer.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Tamara is an Alexandria native. She attended Alexandria Senior High School, and upon graduation pursued a degree in broadcast journalism at Northwestern State University. Tamara has been with KALB as a producer since October of 2006.
Leigh Culbert
Weekend Anchor/Reporter.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Leigh Culbert is a military brat, but certainly no stranger to the Central Louisiana area. Leigh joined the Channel 5 news team in June 2007. She’s a graduate of Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism and a minor in English.
Leigh is a weekend anchor and general news assignment reporter for KALB. She is also responsible for special projects/areas such as education, the city of Natchitoches, and the “Jena Six”.
With a passion for the journalism industry, Leigh says the best part of her job is intermingling with the community and bringing the heart of the story to others. She says each day presents an opportunity to learn something new.
When Leigh isn’t reporting, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, and dancing to a good beat.
Sarah Black
Meteorologist.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Sarah joined the weather team at KALB as the weekend meteorologist in June 2007. She came from WIAT in Birmingham, Alabama where she worked as the weekend meteorologist and 5:00 producer. I
In addition, Sarah spent several years working at WVUA in Tuscaloosa, Alabama as a meteorologist.
The Mississippi native graduated with a degree in journalism from Samford University in Birmingham and followed that up with a graduate degree in broadcast meteorology from Mississippi State University.
While not forecasting the weather for Cenla, Sarah enjoys travelling, shopping and spending time with her family.
She’s also a big sports fan, citing the Atlanta Braves as her favorite team.
