‘We’re all waiting for a breakthrough’

GIVING R.I. A VOICE: News anchor and radio personality Gene Valicenti says Rhode Island needs a unified way to promote itself and must address budget cutting. / PBN PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY
GIVING R.I. A VOICE: News anchor and radio personality Gene Valicenti says Rhode Island needs a unified way to promote itself and must address budget cutting. / PBN PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY

Gene Valicenti maintains a demanding schedule as both a nightly 6 p.m. WJAR-TV NBC 10 television news anchor and radio broadcaster on WPRO’s “The News with Gene Valicenti.” On the radio, his tagline is “Rhode Island’s anchorman.”

What is your favorite technique for keeping your fingers on the pulse of local and state news?

I’m a big reader of newspapers and follow all the cable networks. The clicker is worn out in my house. I read eight to nine newspapers a day and am a big consumer of talk radio. I flip around. I certainly listen to WPRO and NPR and now I have SiriusXM radio.

However, Twitter has been a game changer. I’m on it all day long. I just made up my own list of 200 sources [and] news agencies, so it’s constantly [in use] nonstop. I think that’s where news breaks first and it helps me plan news for the next day.

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You reported from ground zero. Now the Paris terrorist attacks are in the news. What is the greatest challenge in delivering such information to the public?

Getting it right. Breaking news, it’s always a challenge to get it right. Sometimes, some of it is wrong, but it’s your job to correct it as you go. This morning [in November], Reuters was reporting that they captured the suspect they were looking for; other news agencies were reporting just the opposite. But news moves at the speed of light now. The anchor has to be even more responsible and more judicious about what’s passed along.

On radio, you have covered hot topics ranging from 38 Studios to the Providence firefighters’ battle with the mayor. Which topics most resonate with your listeners?

I do all topics, politics, health, oddball stories. I do everything, so I look for content I think will connect with the audience. People stories always connect with the audience. Money stories. I’ll give you a good example. We had the 800-pound man who was kicked out of a hospital because he ordered pizza. Several people were interested in the interview I did with charities that collect clothing. It was eye-opening that people found out they were only getting 6 cents a pound for clothing. These are bread-and-butter issues that connect with the audience.

Which major Rhode Island news issue do public officials need to resolve in 2016?

38 Studios. Collectively, we were all “mugged” and we have a right to demand justice. We want to know what happened. It’s important to move on [but also] to find out exactly what happened, so we don’t get mugged again.

Your morning radio show is billed for news, commentary and analysis, with games, as well as interviews. How do you keep the roles of newsman and entertainer distinct?

Good broadcasting must be entertaining to some degree; otherwise, people will tune you out.

Do the lines get blurred at times?

No, I don’t think so. The audience is pretty sophisticated. We do the news and then talk about it. I’m a newsman first, but I don’t mind if people consider me part entertainer, because that’s important too.

Will the TV and radio networks still be around in 10 years, and if so, how will they compete with social media?

Appointment viewing of the 6 o’clock news is going to go away and give way to on-demand. Younger people don’t want to wait around, they want me when they want me. Radio – as long as it’s in the car, there will be a market for what I do on the radio because of the commute. I don’t see the role of the reporter or anchor being eliminated. The Paris attacks broke first on social media, but after that there’s certainly a place for traditional news to vet, sift and collect the information and present it.

What is your view of 2015 in Rhode Island in terms of the state’s economic health?

Look: we’re all waiting for a breakthrough. We haven’t had it in 2015. Maybe 2016 will be a breakthrough. Small businessmen need relief. Regionalization is a topic that has to be talked about. 38 Studios has to be resolved and certainly Gov. [Gina M.] Raimondo’s truck-toll plan will be a major issue next year.

What do you see for 2016 in terms of Rhode Island’s economic health?

It’s going to be a slow battle. I’m talking to friends and neighbors selling their house for $100,000 less than they paid for it. Our real estate has to come back; I don’t know if it’s going to come back fast enough. We need a unified way to promote the state; we need a serious discussion about regionalization, and about budget cutting.

If you could, what one thing would you like to see happen in Rhode Island in 2016?

I’d love to see a huge manufacturing company relocate from out of state to Quonset. I’d love to see a car company come here, a major manufacturer, and hire people. I’d love to see a real breakthrough on the I-195 land. And I’d like to see the news get less negative and more positive, because I live here and I’m not going anywhere. I like this place. •

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