KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Hi there!
I’m Shea Smith, the weekend anchor/MSJ here at WBIR. I am from the small town of Clinton, Oklahoma. I grew up in western Oklahoma and graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2017. While at OU, I studied journalism with an emphasis in broadcast. While in college, this business took me to Iowa, to cover the 2016 Iowa Caucuses, then to Washington D.C. where I interned at Student Press Law Center. During my last summer as a college student, I interned at MSNBC in New York City, and after graduation, I accepted a job at the TODAY Show and moved back to New York City!
After living the big city life, I moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma for a job as a producer at 2 News Oklahoma. I produced a variety of newscasts. From hours-long wall-to-wall tornado and weather coverage, to former President Donald Trump’s visit to Tulsa, to the centennial of the Tulsa Race Massacre. After producing for 2 and a half years, I realized I missed being out in the community and telling stories.
That’s when I began setting up interviews, writing stories, and practicing my “reporter voice”. After a few months of practice, I became a Multimedia Journalist at Channel 2. A year after that, I began filling in on the anchor desk. While filling in, I loved connecting with the Green Country viewers from behind the desk and bringing them the news of the day.
Now, I am so excited to meet and connect with the WBIR viewers here in East Tennessee! I love telling positive stories within the community that will make you smile, and give you hope. I also enjoy being live on the scene of breaking news and bringing viewers important information they want to know.
In my free time, I’m probably at a coffee shop, working out, or walking around the town exploring. I would love to meet people while out and about, so if you see me, please say hi!
P.S.,
Although I am a huge OU fan, I cannot wait to cheer on Vols and wear orange!
