Gary Shapiro — morning anchor for 9News Denver since 1989 — has announced that he is retiring after nearly 40 years with the station. According to a statement released by 9News Denver, Shapiro felt it was “just time” to end his long stint as morning news mainstay for the station. The long time Denver news reader stated that his intent was to catch up on skiing — which initially drew him to seek a job in Denver from his native Nebraska — and “sleep in” for a change.
A video from Shapiro’s 9News colleagues paying tribute to the anchor was played during the newscasts an is embedded on their website. In 1983 Shapiro joined the then ABC based affiliate as an on-site reporter and worked his way up to anchor by the late 80’s; culminating in his promotion to morning news anchor in 1989, a slot he has held for the last 33 years.
Shapiro’s announcement comes on the heels of veteran CBS4 Denver lead anchor (and former colleague of Shapiro’s) Jim Benemann announcing he will be stepping down from his role with CBS4 in March of 2023 to be replaced by lead sports anchor Michael Spencer. Benemann worked at 9News off an on through the 80’s and 90’s, culminating in the co-lead anchor spot with Adele Arakawa in the late 90’s. The changing of the guard at Denver television stations continues as the shifting landscape of terrestrial media continues in the 2020’s.
You can read and watch more on Gary Shapiro’s announcement on the 9News website link below:
https://www.9news.com/article/
