Media Hall of Fame - Dave LewAllen
Dave LewAllen, 1979, Journalism: LewAllen retired in April after 35 years at WXYZ-TV (Channel 7) in Detroit, where he had been the longest-tenured TV news personality in the market. He previously covered sports for WJBK-TV (Channel 2), CKLW radio (800 AM) in Windsor, Ontario and WJR (760 AM) in Detroit. At WXYZ, LewAllen started as a sports reporter and then became a weekend sports anchor and host of the top-rated "Sports Update" show for 14 years. LewAllen covered Super Bowls, the World Series, multiple Detroit Red Wings Stanley Cup championships, Detroit Pistons championships, Formula One Grand Prix racing, and U.S. Open and Ryder Cup golf championships. In the mid-1990s, LewAllen created and hosted “Golf Michigan,” a show highlighting the golf industry in Michigan. In 2004, LewAllen moved over to the news desk and anchored weekend and nightly newscasts, as well as hosting numerous special broadcasts for the Woodward Dream Cruise, Light Up The Season, and the Rochester Hometown Christmas Parade. LewAllen is the winner of four Emmys, including for coverage of a Detroit firestorm in 2010 and the 2021 mass shooting at Oxford High School, and was named a Silver Circle recipient by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Michigan chapter for his service in the broadcast industry. LewAllen has served as president of the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association and Rainbow Connection, which provides wishes for Michigan children with life-threatening illnesses. LewAllen recently launched The Dave LewAllen Podcast, newsmakers and difference-makers.
“Throughout his 42 years in journalism, Detroiters came to admire Dave LewAllen both for who he is and who he isn’t. At a time when personalities like Charlie LeDuff achieve recognition for noise instead of news, Dave’s career is a testament to the value of objective, no-frills reporting that places a premium on truth, and truth alone. When the partisan press echo chamber encouraged viewers and readers to retreat further into their corners, Dave was a calm, comforting and assured voice who helped us to understand one another and the world in which we live,” said Ross Jones, investigative reporter at WXYZ-TV.
