David Garcia
Encyclopedia
David Garcia was a broadcast journalist for ABC News
. Garcia had the distinction of becoming one of the first Hispanic
news correspondents for a major American television network
in the 1970s.
Garcia was born in Temple, Texas
and briefly attended Baylor University
in the 1960s, but said they had little or nothing to teach him, so he left. He began his career at a local radio station and was soon hired by WFAA radio in Dallas, Texas
. He possessed an unusually deep voice with a rounded, warm sound that marked his on-air delivery with authority. The 1960s were a period when the older style of stern sounding newscasters on radio and television was giving way to a more informal, friendly style. Garcia's voice and delivery neatly bridged the changing era. During his time with WFAA radio, Garcia was selected to anchor the Saturday evening newscasts on WFAA-TV, a job he was carrying out, along with radio reporting, at the time he was hired by ABC radio in New York in 1969.
While working for ABC News, Garcia served as a secondary reporter at the White House
during the Richard Nixon
, Gerald Ford
and Jimmy Carter
administrations. He later was named chief of ABC's Latin America
bureau
, where he covered the assassination of Nicaraguan President Anastasio Somoza Garcia
, among other stories. While working in Latin America, Garcia became interested in environmental reporting after visiting rain forests in the region. He later moved to Los Angeles, California
where his career included stints at KNXT (now KCBS-TV
), KNBC
and KTTV
. His duties at KNXT included anchoring
general reporting and hosting a public affairs program titled At Issue/With David Garcia. He covered the environmental beat from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s at KNBC and from 1993 to 2001 at KTTV, where he served as the station's environmental reporter earning the nickname "Earthman." As Earthman, Garcia achieved such visibility throughout the Los Angeles area that children would send him letters addressed "Earthman, Los Angeles" and the postal service would deliver them to Garcia at his station.
In 2002 he began hosting a newsmagazine show titled Eye on Riverside County at KPSP-LP
. It was during this period that Garcia and his wife, Susan Garcia, went "on the road" together with a video camera and produced half hour programs around the American west for a local public broadcasting station. His wife would shoot and edited the video, Garcia would narrate and appear on camera. He and his wife were actively engaged in this pursuit at the time for his death.
Garcia died in Palm Springs, California
of complications from a liver ailment at the age of 63.
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
. Garcia had the distinction of becoming one of the first Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
news correspondents for a major American television network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
in the 1970s.
Garcia was born in Temple, Texas
Temple, Texas
Temple is a city in Bell County, Texas, United States. Located near the county seat of Belton, Temple lies in the region referred to as Central Texas. Located off Interstate 35, Temple is 65 miles north of Austin and 34 miles south of Waco. In the 2010 Census, Temple's population was 66,102, an...
and briefly attended Baylor University
Baylor University
Baylor University is a private, Christian university located in Waco, Texas. Founded in 1845, Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.-History:...
in the 1960s, but said they had little or nothing to teach him, so he left. He began his career at a local radio station and was soon hired by WFAA radio in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. He possessed an unusually deep voice with a rounded, warm sound that marked his on-air delivery with authority. The 1960s were a period when the older style of stern sounding newscasters on radio and television was giving way to a more informal, friendly style. Garcia's voice and delivery neatly bridged the changing era. During his time with WFAA radio, Garcia was selected to anchor the Saturday evening newscasts on WFAA-TV, a job he was carrying out, along with radio reporting, at the time he was hired by ABC radio in New York in 1969.
While working for ABC News, Garcia served as a secondary reporter at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
during the Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
, Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
and Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
administrations. He later was named chief of ABC's Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
bureau
News bureau
A News bureau is an office for gathering or distributing news. Similar terms are used for specialized bureaus, often to indicate geographic location or scope of coverage: a ‘Tokyo bureau’ refers to a given news operation's office in Tokyo; foreign bureau is a generic term for a news office set up...
, where he covered the assassination of Nicaraguan President Anastasio Somoza Garcia
Anastasio Somoza García
Anastasio Somoza García was officially the President of Nicaragua from 1 January 1937 to 1 May 1947 and from 21 May 1950 to 29 September 1956, but ruled effectively as dictator from 1936 until his assassination.-Biography:Somoza was born in San Marcos, Carazo Department in Nicaragua, the son of...
, among other stories. While working in Latin America, Garcia became interested in environmental reporting after visiting rain forests in the region. He later moved to Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
where his career included stints at KNXT (now KCBS-TV
KCBS-TV
KCBS-TV, channel 2, is an owned-and-operated television station of the CBS Television Network, located in Los Angeles, California. KCBS-TV shares its offices and studio facilities with sister station KCAL-TV inside CBS Studio Center in the Studio City section of Los Angeles, and its transmitter...
), KNBC
KNBC
KNBC, channel 4, is an owned-and-operated television station of the NBC Television Network, licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA. KNBC's studios and offices are located within the NBC Studios complex in Burbank, California, and its transmitter is located on Mount Wilson...
and KTTV
KTTV
KTTV, channel 11, is an owned-and-operated television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in Los Angeles, California. Serving the vast Los Angeles metropolitan area, KTTV is a sister station to KCOP , Los Angeles' MyNetworkTV station...
. His duties at KNXT included anchoring
News presenter
A news presenter is a person who presents news during a news program in the format of a television show, on the radio or the Internet.News presenters can work in a radio studio, television studio and from remote broadcasts in the field especially weather...
general reporting and hosting a public affairs program titled At Issue/With David Garcia. He covered the environmental beat from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s at KNBC and from 1993 to 2001 at KTTV, where he served as the station's environmental reporter earning the nickname "Earthman." As Earthman, Garcia achieved such visibility throughout the Los Angeles area that children would send him letters addressed "Earthman, Los Angeles" and the postal service would deliver them to Garcia at his station.
In 2002 he began hosting a newsmagazine show titled Eye on Riverside County at KPSP-LP
KPSP-LP
KPSP-CD is a CBS-affiliated Class A low-power television station serving California's Coachella Valley . It is officially licensed to Cathedral City. Its studios and offices are in Thousand Palms, California...
. It was during this period that Garcia and his wife, Susan Garcia, went "on the road" together with a video camera and produced half hour programs around the American west for a local public broadcasting station. His wife would shoot and edited the video, Garcia would narrate and appear on camera. He and his wife were actively engaged in this pursuit at the time for his death.
Garcia died in Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
of complications from a liver ailment at the age of 63.