WKBN’s Gerry Ricciutti: Reporting from Home, Looking Ahead

Gerry Ricciutti, senior reporter at WKBN-TV, is hanging tough while crafting news packages from his basement. You can read more Gerry at his bio on the WKBN website.

What are some ways the COVID-19 outbreak has changed your work life?

For starters, this pandemic has completely changed my job as I know it.  My wife and I had been on a long-scheduled vacation in early March, but as you know, the concerns over COVID-19 were already growing at that time.  While we were gone, we realized the cruise line we were using was going to cancel its future trips, and thankfully we were able to return to port as scheduled and fly home.  As this was happening, we also learned Governor DeWine was urging anyone returning from outside the country to self-quarantine for fourteen days.  Even though I was never sick, after getting back my bosses thought it best to have me work from home for the time being.  I’m now nearly through my third week of doing this, and honestly don’t know when that may change. 

For now, I’m using my aging home computer and my cell phone to check my sources and arrange for stories.  Those still working in the newsroom (many of my co-workers spend their days working out of their news cars — shooting, writing, editing and then sending in their stories, all from the road) are able to record phone interviews that I do from home and then send me those recordings.  I pick the soundbites, write the scripts and, if needed, voice the stories from the comfort of my basement.  I email the scripts to the show producers, many of whom are also working from home, and my photographer edits everything at the station.  These days instead of dressing in suits (and the Hats), I’m wearing sweats and slippers.

How about your personal life?

My day begins around 6:30 or 7 a.m. now, instead of 4:30, when I had been getting up to go to the gym.  With the gyms all closed, I just grab coffee at home, watch a little of the network morning shows and then go downstairs and fire up the computer and let it get up to speed.  Between 8 and 4, I put together the stories I arrange myself as well as those assigned to me.  A lot of this involves phone interviews and conference calls.  Afterward, when the workday is done, I shut down the computer and go upstairs to make the evening meal — but I keep an eye on my cell phone for things that might develop into the evening (this has not changed from before the pandemic).

As we all have experienced, life as we know it has changed.  My wife, our youngest daughter and I are all home and my oldest daughter and her husband are working and studying from their home in Akron.  Their college courses are all being done remotely.   The band and choir concerts we would have attended are cancelled and the graduation ceremony we were looking forward to won’t happen. I’ve been fortunate enough to serve as “The Voice” for the Canfield Band Program, but its spring concerts are likely to be cancelled as well.  It’s difficult losing those things you’re planning for.  Instead, we read, catch up on TV shows we’ve missed and try to get outside for fresh air when the weather’s nice.

And look ahead.

What steps are you taking to hang tough?

I try to look ahead to getting together with friends and family again to fulfill those plans that had to be put off for now — hoping events now planned to happen this summer may still take place.  But there has also been sadness.  Some of those who’ve passed away were friends, and others we know are now sick.  I worry about my parents, who are elderly.  I check on them and pick things up for them at store, which I had been doing before any of this started, but now it seems to take on more importance.  

What advice are you sharing with the people you love?

I guess the only advice I would share is to touch base with your family and friends to see if they need anything and if they’re alright.  I’ve heard some people are actually using this free time they have at home from their jobs to reach out to friends they haven’t heard from in a while.  I’ve been trying to do more of that myself.  I figure just saying “hello” may be even more significant now.