Michael Cogdill
Michael Cogdill | |
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| Born | June 11, 1961 |
| Education | North Buncombe High School University of North Carolina at Asheville (BA) |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist Anchor Novelist Screenwriter Film producer |
| Spouse | Danette Luanne Cogdill |
| Website | https://michaelcogdill.wordpress.com/ |
Michael Cogdill (born George Michael Cogdill, June 11, 1961) is an American journalist, anchor, novelist, screenwriter, and film producer. His work as a journalist has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, CNBC, MSNBC, and CNN, and is the recipient of 32 Emmys and a Edward R. Murrow Award.[1]
Early life
[edit]Cogdill was born in Asheville, North Carolina, the son of a truck driver and a mill worker. His earliest jobs included mowing lawns, cleaning horse stalls, and working as a production assistant on film sets.[2] He graduated from North Buncombe High School in Weaverville, North Carolina in 1979 and then graduated cum laude from the University of North Carolina at Asheville in 1984, earning a BA degree in communications.[3]
Early television career
[edit]Two weeks after college graduation, Cogdill began his career in television, working at WECT, an NBC affiliate in Wilmington, North Carolina. He soon moved over to WWAY, Wilmington's ABC station,[4] and later migrated to CBS-aligned WRDW-TV in Augusta, Georgia. He finally landed at Greenville, South Carolina station WYFF (an NBC affiliate) in 1989, where he cemented his position as arguably the most decorated anchorman in South Carolina history.[5]
National acclaim
[edit]Cogdill first rose to prominence when he reported on the story of Susan Smith, a Union, South Carolina woman convicted of murdering her two young sons in 1994 (after initially claiming that an African-American man had carjacked her and kidnapped the children). Cogdill’s Susan Smith: A Question of Justice (1996) garnered an Emmy, leading to appearances on NBC's Today Show, CNBC, MSNBC, and CNN.[6][7]
Books
[edit]Cogdill is the author of She-Rain, a novel set in rural western North Carolina in the 1920s.[8]
Film
[edit]In 2014 it was announced that filmmaker Richard O'Sullivan had plans to develop She-Rain into a feature film with Cogdill's production company HeartStrong Media serving as a producing partner.[9]
Awards
[edit]In addition to winning the Edward R. Murrow Award and 30 Emmys, Cogdill has received the South Carolina Broadcasters Association Star Award, a South Carolina Television Journalist Award, and has been a multiple winner of the Radio and Television News Director Association of the Carolinas Award.[10]
External links
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Writing the next chapter: Michael Cogdill scripts life after broadcast news". Greenville Journal. February 17, 2022.
- ^ [1], 20 Questions with Michael Cogdill - Greenville Online
- ^ "Michael Cogdill Keynote Speaker". World Class Speakers.
- ^ [2] The blue banner online resource (Asheville, NC)
- ^ "Michael Cogdill anchors final newscast before retirement". WYFF Channel 4. November 24, 2021.
- ^ [3] Susan Smith: 20 years later, case still a shocker - The State, October 18, 2014
- ^ [4] Top 5 'The Black Guy Did It' Excuses by White Criminals - Newsone, May 29, 2009
- ^ [5] She-Rain by Michael Cogdill - Amazon
- ^ [6] She-Rain - IMDb
- ^ [7] WYFF 4 honored with 7 South Carolina Broadcasters Association awards, August 14, 2013
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