Wilcox to remain
at KHON despite
all the rumors
Leslie Wilcox has been signed to a new five-year contract at KHON-TV, where she has anchored the 5 p.m. weekday newscast since July 2002.
Rumors had swirled for months that when her contract expired at the end of 2003, an unhappy Wilcox would leave the Channel 2 newsroom. A one-month contract extension was mutually agreed upon to give Wilcox, the station, and attorneys for both sides time to reach a new deal.
An official with a competing station, contacted last month, had heard all the talk, but did not believe Wilcox could be stolen away. She signed the new deal yesterday.
"We're very happy because Leslie is absolutely critical to our news operation," said Rick Blangiardi, senior vice president and general manager of KHON and KGMB-TV. "Her knowledge of Hawaii and the equity and the trust that she's established throughout her career with the people of Hawaii are very important to us."
According to archived biographical information on the old KHON Web site, Wilcox has covered news in Hawaii all her adult life.
She has worked as a reporter for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, a reporter and anchor in the Bob Sevey heyday of KGMB-TV, and since 1992 she has been at KHON. Wilcox joined the station as executive producer and co-anchor of the Channel 2 Morning News with then-co-anchor Howard Dashefsky.
During her tenure she founded the Lokahi Tree Giving Project in conjunction with the Salvation Army.
Contacted in December, Wilcox would only say that she remained under contract and was "100 percent committed" to the (Christmas season) Lokahi Tree project. She did not return calls last night.
"All along I wanted to create comfort for Leslie and at the same time establish the foundation in our working relationship going forward, that will enable us to do the kinds of thins we hope to do," said Blangiardi.
The station is expected to release a statement announcing her retention on Monday.