Lisa Fletcher
Encyclopedia
Lisa Fletcher is an award winning American television journalist. She is an investigative reporter and news anchor who has covered stories around the world - both for ABC News as a correspondent and various major-market television stations, including most currently WJLA in Washington, DC.
While reporting for ABC News, Fletcher was assigned to major stories including the in-depth examination of Sarah Palin's record and standing during the 2008 presidential campaign, the Governor Mark Sanford political scandal in Argentina, the Craigslist Killer in Boston, the OJ Simpson trial and sentencing in Las Vegas and exclusive, daily coverage of the Michael Jackson death investigation. Fletcher filed more than 50 separate news stories in the Jackson case for "Good Morning America
", "World News with Diane Sawyer", "Nightline
" and "ABC News Radio
".
just outside Portland, Oregon
. She was captain of her high school's speech and debate team from 1984 to 1986 as well as a reporter for her school newspaper. Fletcher was nationally ranked for speech and debate.
In 1990, while attending the University of Oregon, Fletcher, a vegetarian
, won the title of "Miss Lane County" - making her one of 16 contestants for the Miss Oregon title
. Her fact sheet stated that she was interested in "promoting the ethical treatment of animals." Fletcher received national media attention after telling a reporter for "The Oregonian
" that should she win, she couldn't accept one of the prizes - a fur coat - as it contradicted her values. Regarding the fact that an animal advocate
was contending for the Miss Oregon title, Bob Barker
(former host of the Miss USA
and Miss Universe
pageants) publicly supported Fletcher, saying "There's absolutely no reason why her views should jeopardize her chances of winning."
degree from the University of Oregon in 1990. She majored in Journalism
with a minor in English
.
In 1990, Fletcher began her on-air career while still in college with KEZI-TV
in Eugene, Oregon
. After graduating, she accepted a job anchoring daily newscasts for KTVZ-TV
in Bend, Oregon
. In 1993, she returned to Eugene and KEZI where she was the main anchor and investigative reporter. She covered natural disasters, including some of the Northwest's most devastating floods and forest fires. She also anchored coverage of one of the nation's worst high school shootings, the May 1998 tragedy at Thurston High School in Springfield, Oregon
, adjacent to Eugene. The coverage she anchored of the Thurston High shootings
was honored with an Edward R. Murrow Award for broadcast excellence.
. She also co-hosted a Sunday morning political talk show with veteran news man Cary Pfeffer. Her undercover reports closed down corrupt multi-million dollar businesses, put child predators behind bars and forced state agencies to account for millions of dollars of taxpayer money. Undercover, she also exposed serious security breaches at one of the nation's largest airports. As a result, the TSA immediately suspended, and later replaced, its Federal Security Director. The TSA took over all security checkpoints around the clock and launched a national inquiry into every airport's security procedures. Fletcher's stories also exposed lead in poker chips that are used in the world's most popular casinos. This story prompted international attention and a government investigation.
Fletcher won the prestigious Nancy Dickerson Whitehead
Medallion and a $10,000 award for her stories that exposed children abusing over-the-counter medications, resulting in their tragic deaths. Fletcher and her producer donated their $10,000 in prize money to a Phoenix area agency whose mission is to help kids stay off drugs.
On December 4, 2007, she began working as an ABC News
correspondent in Los Angeles
. Then ABC News President David Westin said Fletcher had "a distinguished resume of hard-hitting investigative reports that have led to reforms in government and business. She's an incisive reporter and a skilled storyteller..." . ABC News consistently featured Fletcher on Good Morning America
, ABC World News and Nightline
.
Fletcher has won many honors for her work including the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award, multiple Edward R. Murrow Award and numerous Emmy Awards for investigative journalism. She's been featured in magazines, newspapers and a PBS documentary on her work as an investigative journalist.
, the president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States
.
She was formerly married to David Fletcher of Phoenix, Arizona.
While reporting for ABC News, Fletcher was assigned to major stories including the in-depth examination of Sarah Palin's record and standing during the 2008 presidential campaign, the Governor Mark Sanford political scandal in Argentina, the Craigslist Killer in Boston, the OJ Simpson trial and sentencing in Las Vegas and exclusive, daily coverage of the Michael Jackson death investigation. Fletcher filed more than 50 separate news stories in the Jackson case for "Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
", "World News with Diane Sawyer", "Nightline
Nightline
Nightline, or ABC News Nightline is a late-night news program broadcast by ABC in the United States, and has a franchised formula to other networks and stations elsewhere in the world. It airs weeknights, usually for 31 minutes. Created by Roone Arledge, the program featured Ted Koppel as its main...
" and "ABC News Radio
ABC News Radio
ABC News Radio is the radio service of ABC News, a division of the ABC Television Network. Formerly known as ABC Radio News, ABC News Radio feeds, through Cumulus Media Networks, newscasts on the hour to its more than 2,000 affiliates...
".
Biography
Fletcher (then named Lisa Verch) graduated from Clackamas High SchoolClackamas High School
Clackamas High School is a public high school located in Clackamas, Oregon. The school itself was built in 2002, replacing an older, smaller building built in 1957 which is now Alder Creek Middle School, and starting the 2010-2011 school year the campus includes the former building of Sunrise...
just outside Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. She was captain of her high school's speech and debate team from 1984 to 1986 as well as a reporter for her school newspaper. Fletcher was nationally ranked for speech and debate.
In 1990, while attending the University of Oregon, Fletcher, a vegetarian
Vegetarianism
Vegetarianism encompasses the practice of following plant-based diets , with or without the inclusion of dairy products or eggs, and with the exclusion of meat...
, won the title of "Miss Lane County" - making her one of 16 contestants for the Miss Oregon title
Miss Oregon
The Miss Oregon competition is a regional scholarship competition and beauty pageant that selects the representative for the U.S. state of Oregon in the Miss America pageant...
. Her fact sheet stated that she was interested in "promoting the ethical treatment of animals." Fletcher received national media attention after telling a reporter for "The Oregonian
The Oregonian
The Oregonian is the major daily newspaper in Portland, Oregon, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 1850...
" that should she win, she couldn't accept one of the prizes - a fur coat - as it contradicted her values. Regarding the fact that an animal advocate
Animal welfare
Animal welfare is the physical and psychological well-being of animals.The term animal welfare can also mean human concern for animal welfare or a position in a debate on animal ethics and animal rights...
was contending for the Miss Oregon title, Bob Barker
Bob Barker
Robert William "Bob" Barker is a former American television game show host. He is best known for hosting CBS's The Price Is Right from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American television history, and for hosting Truth or Consequences from 1956 to 1975.Born...
(former host of the Miss USA
Miss USA
The Miss USA beauty contest has been held annually since 1952 to select the United States entrant in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operates both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA...
and Miss Universe
Miss Universe
Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
pageants) publicly supported Fletcher, saying "There's absolutely no reason why her views should jeopardize her chances of winning."
Education and early career
Fletcher received a Bachelor of ScienceBachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree from the University of Oregon in 1990. She majored in Journalism
Journalism school
A journalism school is a school or department, usually part of an established university, where journalists are trained. An increasingly used term for a journalism department, school or college is 'J-School'...
with a minor in English
English major
The English Major is a term in the United States and a few other countries for an undergraduate university degree focused around the consumption, analysis, and production of texts in the English language...
.
In 1990, Fletcher began her on-air career while still in college with KEZI-TV
KEZI
KEZI is a digital broadcast television station operating in Eugene, Oregon, United States. It is the ABC affiliate for Eugene and produces more than 24 hours of newscasts a week...
in Eugene, Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
. After graduating, she accepted a job anchoring daily newscasts for KTVZ-TV
KTVZ
KTVZ is the NBC-affiliated television station for Central Oregon that is licensed to Bend. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 21 from a transmitter in the city on Awbrey Butte west of U.S. 97. Owned by the News-Press & Gazette Company, the station is sister to low-powered...
in Bend, Oregon
Bend, Oregon
Bend is a city in and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, United States, and the principal city of the Bend, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bend is Central Oregon's largest city, and, despite its modest size, is the de facto metropolis of the region, owing to the low population...
. In 1993, she returned to Eugene and KEZI where she was the main anchor and investigative reporter. She covered natural disasters, including some of the Northwest's most devastating floods and forest fires. She also anchored coverage of one of the nation's worst high school shootings, the May 1998 tragedy at Thurston High School in Springfield, Oregon
Springfield, Oregon
Springfield is a city in Lane County, Oregon, United States. Located in the Southern Willamette Valley, it is within the Eugene-Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. Separated from Eugene to the west, mainly by Interstate 5, Springfield is the second-most populous city in the metropolitan area...
, adjacent to Eugene. The coverage she anchored of the Thurston High shootings
Kip Kinkel
Kipland Philip "Kip" Kinkel is an American spree killer. In May 1998, at the age of 15, he murdered his parents and engaged in a school shooting at Thurston High School in Springfield, Oregon that left two students dead and 22 others wounded...
was honored with an Edward R. Murrow Award for broadcast excellence.
TV career
In 2002, after winning an Edward R. Murrow award for an investigative series that exposed corrupt practices among Portland immigration officials, Fletcher accepted the job as the lead investigative reporter and news anchor for KNXV-TV in Phoenix, ArizonaPhoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
. She also co-hosted a Sunday morning political talk show with veteran news man Cary Pfeffer. Her undercover reports closed down corrupt multi-million dollar businesses, put child predators behind bars and forced state agencies to account for millions of dollars of taxpayer money. Undercover, she also exposed serious security breaches at one of the nation's largest airports. As a result, the TSA immediately suspended, and later replaced, its Federal Security Director. The TSA took over all security checkpoints around the clock and launched a national inquiry into every airport's security procedures. Fletcher's stories also exposed lead in poker chips that are used in the world's most popular casinos. This story prompted international attention and a government investigation.
Fletcher won the prestigious Nancy Dickerson Whitehead
Nancy Dickerson
Nancy Dickerson was an American pioneering radio and television newswoman. As famous as a celebrity and socialite as she was for her journalism, she later became an award-winning independent producer of documentaries....
Medallion and a $10,000 award for her stories that exposed children abusing over-the-counter medications, resulting in their tragic deaths. Fletcher and her producer donated their $10,000 in prize money to a Phoenix area agency whose mission is to help kids stay off drugs.
On December 4, 2007, she began working as an ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
correspondent in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Then ABC News President David Westin said Fletcher had "a distinguished resume of hard-hitting investigative reports that have led to reforms in government and business. She's an incisive reporter and a skilled storyteller..." . ABC News consistently featured Fletcher on Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
, ABC World News and Nightline
Nightline
Nightline, or ABC News Nightline is a late-night news program broadcast by ABC in the United States, and has a franchised formula to other networks and stations elsewhere in the world. It airs weeknights, usually for 31 minutes. Created by Roone Arledge, the program featured Ted Koppel as its main...
.
Fletcher has won many honors for her work including the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award, multiple Edward R. Murrow Award and numerous Emmy Awards for investigative journalism. She's been featured in magazines, newspapers and a PBS documentary on her work as an investigative journalist.
Personal
Lisa Fletcher is engaged to marry Wayne PacelleWayne Pacelle
Wayne A. Pacelle is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Humane Society of the United States , the nation's largest animal advocacy organization, with nearly 10 million members as of 2006. Pacelle took office June 1, 2004, after serving for nearly 10 years as the organization's chief...
, the president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States
Humane Society of the United States
The Humane Society of the United States , based in Washington, D.C., is the largest animal advocacy organization in the world. In 2009, HSUS reported assets of over US$160 million....
.
She was formerly married to David Fletcher of Phoenix, Arizona.