Diane Willis ( Bruhn) (born July 4, 1948) is an American journalist, documentarian, teacher, and newscaster.

Career as a broadcaster

Willis graduated

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

from Augustana College and later earned multiple master's degrees from both the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

and the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

. She spent six years teaching

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

and journalism before transitioning to a career in broadcast journalism. Her first on-air position was at

KTVI KTVI (channel 2) is a television station in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside KPLR-TV (channel 11), an owned-and-operated station of The CW. The two stations sh ...

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

during 1981–82, where she worked as a reporter and anchor. In 1983, she joined Boston's

WNEV-TV WHDH (channel 7) is an independent television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is owned by Sunbeam Television alongside Cambridge-licensed CW affiliate WLVI (channel 56). WHDH and WLVI share studios at Bulfinch Place (near ...

as a reporter and was soon promoted to main female anchor, co-anchoring the 6:00 p.m. newscast with veteran journalist Tom Ellis. Although the newscast ranked third in local ratings, it received positive critical reviews during her tenure. She stepped down in 1986. Following her departure from WNEV, Willis taught journalism at

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...

for several semesters, alongside her then-husband, Jim Willis. In January 1987, she joined

WRTV WRTV (channel 6) is a television station in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, affiliated with American Broadcasting Company, ABC and owned by the E. W. Scripps Company. The station's studios are located on Meridian Street (Indianapolis), Mer ...

in Indianapolis as co-anchor of the 6:00 and 11:00 p.m. newscasts with Clyde Lee. The pair became prominent figures in Indianapolis news broadcasting and remained with the station until 2001, when they both resigned and left television news. After leaving WRTV, Willis and Lee co-founded Lee-Willis Communications, a consulting firm specializing in public relations, crisis communications, and media training for corporate executives. In 2010, the firm drew criticism when WRTV reported that a high school had paid them $30,000 for public relations services. Willis responded to the controversy, stating that the firm could no longer provide additional support to the school.

Personal life

Willis married Jim Willis in the early 1980s. In 1983, the couple adopted two sons, David and John. They later divorced. Willis later married Clyde Lee in 2000.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willis, Diane Television anchors from Boston American television reporters and correspondents American women television journalists Living people 1948 births 21st-century American women Television anchors from Indianapolis