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    PBS SoCal, KMEX Lead L.A. Local Emmy Wins; KVEA, KABC Land Top Newscast Prizes

    PBS SoCal (KOCE and KCET) was the big winner Saturday night at the L.A. Area Emmy Awards, landing eight — including for live events-programming, entertainment, crime/social issues and arts. Univision’s KMEX was next, with seven, followed by Telemundo’s KVEA with six.

    KVEA once again won the newscast Emmys for daily daytime (11 a.m. to 7 p.m.) and daily evening (7 p.m. to 12 a.m.). Last year, KVEA won all three — also picking up daily morning (4 a.m. to 11 a.m.). But this year, KABC/ABC7 won that morning newscast Emmy.

    The 2026 Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards were held Saturday at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, hosted by KABC entertainment reporter George Pennacchio. KABC’s David Ono received the 2026 Los Angeles Area Emmy Governors Award, “recognizing his more than three decades of broadcasting and his passion for in-depth storytelling.” Ono’s KABC co-anchor, Jovana Lara, presented him the honor.

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    Bob Bain and Bob Bain Productions produced the ceremony, while Greg Taylor and Brian DeCloux are the Los Angeles Area Governors. Categories included Live and Breaking News Coverage, Crime and Social Issues, Culture and History, the Arts, Health and Science, Human Interest, Music, Sports and the Environment.

    Beyond PBS SoCal, KMEX and KVEA, other outlet winners included KABC/ABC7 (four), KNBC/NBC4 (four), Spectrum News 1 (two), Spectrum SportsNet (two), LA36 (one), Spectrum SportsNet LA (one) and USC football (one).

    As for this year’s nominee totals, PBS SoCal landed 29 nominations; KABC/ABC7 received 21, Univision outlet KMEX received 20, Telemundo’s KVEA had 18, KNBC/NBC4 landed 15 and Spectrum News 1 had 10.

    For the station newscast awards, every TV station that submits is eligible. This year’s eligibility period was for the 2025 calendar year, which means many of the news categories winners focused on the devastating wildfires that ripped through the region last January.

    Here are this year’s winners (see all nominees here):

    Station awards do not have nominations; rather, all entrants are candidates for the Emmy statuette.

    Regularly Scheduled Daily Morning Newscast: 4:00am-11:00am

    “Eyewitness News at 6am” (ABC7)


    Regularly Scheduled Daily Daytime Newscast: 11:00am-4:00pm

    “Noticiero Telemundo 52 Al Mediodía” (KVEA)


    Regularly Scheduled Daily Evening Newscast: 4:00pm-12:00am

    “Noticiero Telemundo 52 A las 11pm” (KVEA)


    L.A. Local Color

    “Hispanic Heritage Month – Candelas Guitars” (Spectrum News 1)


    Independent Programming

    No nominations


    Education/Information

    “For Dear Life: Art, Medicine & Disability (PST ART)” (PBS SoCal)
    Angela Boisvert, Producer
    Nic Cha Kim, Executive Producer
    Tamara Gould, Executive Producer
    Matt Pappas, Director of Photography
    Suzanne Méjean Pinney, Editor
    Robert McDonnell, Supervising Producer


    Crime/Social Issues

    “Aging in America: Survive or Thrive” (PBS SoCal)
    Neil Steinberg, Director, Executive Producer
    Mark Jonathan Harris, Producer
    Steve Purcell, Co-Producer, Editor
    Karin Hayes, Co-Producer
    Martin Sheen, Host
    Michelle Merker, Producer


    Arts

    “Aretha! with Sheléa and the Pacific Symphony” (PBS SoCal)
    Maura Daly Phinney, Executive Producer
    Andy Trimlett, Producer
    Steve Purcell, Director
    Keena Levert, Associate Producer
    Sheléa Melody McDonald, On-Camera Talent


    Culture/History

    “Somos de Aquí” (KMEX-TV)
    William Negrón, Executive Producer
    Julio Octavio Valdez, Anchor
    Carlos Leonardo Gonzalez, Camera
    Juan Ramirez, Editor
    Marco A. Flores, Executive Producer


    Informational Series (more than 50% remote)

    “Tu Voz LA” (KMEX-TV)


    Informational Series (more than 50% studio)

    “Al Punto California” (KMEX-TV)


    Entertainment

    “Color in Motion: Chromatic Explorations of Cinema (PST ART)” (PBS SoCal)
    Jaime Morgan Muñoz, Producer
    Nic Cha Kim, Producer
    Angela Boisvert, Executive Producer
    Tamara Gould, Executive Producer
    Matt Bass, Director of Photography
    Ben Boyd, Editor
    Robert McDonnell, Supervising Producer


    Music Composition

    “Art & Science Collide” (PBS SoCal)
    Dan Deacon, Composer


    News Series

    “Black Heritage: Altadena Roots And Resilience” (NBC4)


    Sports Special

    “竜巻 – The Story of Nomomania” (Spectrum SportsNet LA)
    Aaron Minderhout, Producer
    Greg Taylor, Executive Producer
    Erick Vazquez, Producer
    Cary Osborne, Associate Producer
    Logan Montane, Camera
    Matthew Blum, Camera
    Joseph Forquer, Camera
    Brandon Cervantes, Camera
    Margie Carson, Camera


    Sports Series – Programming

    “Backstage: Lakers” (Spectrum SportsNet)


    Live Sports Coverage

    “Nuestra Copa, Nuestra Pasión” (KVEA)


    Sports Feature

    “After the Fire (Backstage Dodgers)” (Spectrum SportsNet)


    Sports Tease

    “Shohei Ohtani: Baseball’s Solar Eclipse” (Spectrum News 1)
    Taylor Schaub, Producer


    Live Special Events – Programming

    “66th Annual LA County Holiday Celebration” (PBS SoCal)
    Taylor Comen, Executive Producer
    Letitia Fernandez Ivins, Executive Producer
    Michelle Merker, Producer
    Jennifer Chang, Writer
    Cristina Lucio, Associate Producer
    Patrick Traylor, Associate Producer
    Madeleine Ciano, Associate Producer
    Aloe Blacc, Host
    Maya Jupiter, Host


    Live Special Events – News

    “ABC7 Presents the 40th Annual Kingdom Day Parade” (ABC7)


    Feature Segment

    “Indispensables, Pero Invisibles: Manos que Reconstruyen (Al Punto California)” (KMEX-TV)
    Arturo Quezada, Camera, Editor, Producer
    Dina Rodriguez, Producer


    Information Segment

    “Combating Climate Change with Trees (Earth Focus)” (PBS SoCal)
    Daniel H. Birman, Director of Photography, Executive Producer, Producer, Writer, Director
    Megan E. Chao, Editor, Executive Producer, Producer
    Angela Boisvert, Executive Producer
    Tamara Gould, Executive Producer
    Clarissa Guy, Producer
    Jaime Morgan Muñoz, Producer
    Susy Garciasalas Barkley, Producer
    Jason Janocko, Director of Photography
    Erik C. Andersen, Editor
    Robert McDonnell, Senior Supervising Producer


    Live Coverage of an Unscheduled News Event

    “Breaking News: SoCal Firestorms” (ABC7)


    Entertainment News Story

    “Bob’s Brush with Fame” (NBC4 News at 5) (NBC4)
    Michael Brownlee, Producer, Reporter, Writer


    Business/Consumer News Story

    “Ausentismo en los Campos de Cultivo” (Noticiero Telemundo 52 a las 6pm) (KVEA)
    Enrique Chiabra, Producer, Reporter
    Luis Enrique Rivera, Producer
    Manuel Pineda, Camera
    Yolimar Aquino, Editor
    Yansily Reyes, Editor


    Crime/Social Issues News Story

    “Infierno en Adelanto” (Noticias 34 6pm) (KMEX-TV)
    Candela Martinez, Reporter, Writer


    Art/Cultural/Historical News Story

    “L.A. Cumbia” (Noticias 34 6pm) (KMEX-TV)
    Arturo Quezada, Camera, Editor, Producer
    Dina Rodriguez, Producer
    Alvaro Corzo Virviescas, Co-Producer


    Environment News Story

    “Cryo-Rescue: Race to Preserve Life” (NBC4 News at 5pm) (NBC4)
    Enrique Roman, Camera
    Annette Arreola, Reporter


    Health/Science News Story

    “Inteligencia Artificial y la Ciencia Del Cambio Climático” (Noticias 34 6pm) (KMEX-TV)
    Gabriela Teissier, Producer, Reporter, Writer
    Andres Fernando Pruna, Camera, Editor, Producer


    Human Interest News Story

    “KVEA Repartidor de fresas detenido” (Noticias Telemundo 52 A las 6pm) (KVEA)
    Enrique Chiabra, Anchor


    Investigative News Story

    “SoCal Firestorms 6 months later: Palisades Fire Investigation” (Eyewitness News at 5pm) (ABC7)


    Sports News Story

    “La Huella Del Fútbol” (Noticiero Telemundo 52 A las 5:30pm) (KVEA)
    Alejandro Navarro, Anchor


    Short Promo – Sports

    “War Time” (USC Football)
    Eric Michael, Camera, Director, Executive Producer
    Sanay Saboo, Director, Editor, Producer
    Luke Cuellar, Graphic Designer
    Mic Ferrante, Editor
    Michael Malara, Editor
    Geo Robinson, Editor
    Ezekiel Wagner, Editor
    Zahir Martin, Editor
    Douson Yuan, Editor
    George Tyler He􀆯ley, Editor
    Radmen Niven, Associate Producer
    Cody Worsham, Associate Producer


    Short Promo – News

    “NBC4: Picking Up the Pieces” (NBC4)


    Short Promo – Programming

    “Climate & Environment (PBS SoCal)” (PBS SoCal)
    Olivia Cox, Editor, Producer


    Public Service Announcement

    “Emergency Lights? Pull to the Right” (LA36)
    Vance Kotrla, Director, Producer, Writer

     

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