tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28153350462489927062011-07-08T01:08:07.064-04:00Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.comBlogger771100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-46757664007851899662010-03-08T14:18:00.002-05:002010-03-08T14:27:00.257-05:00

Last week Lee Conklin and I traveled to the Hocking Correctional Facility in Nelsonville, OH to interview former Lucas County GOP head and Republican fundraiser, Tom Noe. Below is the package that aired last Wednesday. The interview lasted around 45 minutes, but the package covers most of the topics that were discussed, save the bit about former Toledo priest Gerald Robinson. His cell is about

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-84832994607997054832010-02-10T16:54:00.002-05:002010-02-10T16:56:58.777-05:00

The following is Kristian Brown's Super Saving Sunday story from last weekend.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-23210283572726253762010-01-18T08:09:00.011-05:002010-01-18T12:23:46.629-05:00

Bill Hormann and I traveled to Lucasville, OH the first week of this month to cover the execution of Vernon Smith. Bill was a witness to the execution. In addition to our coverage January 7th, after the execution, Bill appeared on Conklin and Company to discuss what he was a witness to. I did not witness the execution, but I have uploaded the following photos and documents that were given to the

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-83344793394408735682009-11-06T17:57:00.003-05:002009-11-06T18:09:52.541-05:00

The Northern Slimy Salamander (Plethodon glutinosus)to be precise. I was shooting tomorrow's "What a Zoo" segment with The Toledo Zoo's Tim Herman. Tim was showing me a slimy salamander that had laid some eggs that hatched recently. He noticed that one of the salamanders in the exhibit was shedding its skin. Tim told me he'd only seen this once before and that the salamanders usually did this at

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-65877238948560203592009-11-03T19:46:00.002-05:002009-11-03T19:51:46.545-05:00

Right now I'm camped with Kristian Brown at the Lucas County Democrat Party's party at UAW Local 12. We'll be covering the Wilkowski camp's reaction to tonight's election results. Righth now the place is starting to fill up. Probably 50-75 people here right now and the crowd is steadily growing. A few of the Wilkowski supporters have told us how confident they are at this point. Right now

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-38842133037866731722009-11-03T11:40:00.003-05:002009-11-03T11:45:42.514-05:00

Ok, so if you follow me on Twitter you know that I've already voted. My polling place is DeVaux Middle School or Jr. High whatever. Anyodd, the poll workers were very helpful and there was no wait at all. I'm here to give the "all clear" on the Sylvania & Douglas front. I'm working second shift today and I'll be at UAW Local 12 with Kristian Brown to bring viewers the latest from the Keith

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-67079576354981130552009-10-07T17:52:00.003-04:002009-10-07T18:06:29.016-04:00

With 12, check that 11 (actually not really sure...at the time that this piece went to press I was still unsure what was happening about Trisha L. dropping out of the city council stampede) candidates running for six open seats on Toledo City Council, I realized many people probably don't really know who these candidates are. I worked with Bill Hormann today. He's in the middle of putting

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-24842336902870317012009-09-28T17:44:00.002-04:002009-09-28T17:55:41.986-04:00

My apologies for the lack of posts here lately. I tweaked my shoulder playing softball recently so I've been filling in as a show editor quite a bit as of late. It works out because we are on the tail end of vacation season for our staff. Anyodd this post is just a heads up that I will be editing this week, shooting most of next week and then editing the entire week after that. Hopefully I'll get

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-10529248483378121512009-08-20T11:16:00.002-04:002009-08-20T11:22:02.941-04:00

Caught up with U.S. Rep. Bob Latta last week and got his take on the healthcare legislation that the President and congressional democrats are pushing for.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-5657834750518337682009-08-18T12:00:00.001-04:002009-08-18T12:18:29.253-04:00

Last Friday, Bill Hormann and I went to mayoral candidate Opal Covey's house to do an interview with her. After I shot the interview, I was asked by several people to make it available in its entirety. Well, here it is.Part 1STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-68025442146864661062009-08-05T11:19:00.000-04:002009-08-05T11:28:27.442-04:00

So I'm getting ready to shoot an interview in this house in Monclova yesterday. There are six adults in the room that have come for the interview and two kids that are going to be part of my b-roll for this story about a new children's educational product. As I'm setting up, I pull a microphone cable out of my vest pocket and start hooking it up to my camera. I hear a slight gasp behind me and

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-53439349977397150192009-06-29T10:20:00.000-04:002009-06-29T10:34:41.874-04:00

You may have heard on television lately or read in the local paper, that Lucas County Commissioner/Mayoral Candidate Ben Konop was heckled at a presser over the weekend. Like we stated when we started these things, the photog vlogs are to share video that we shot (Chris G. in this case) that didn't make it to our airwaves. Here's the heckling presser.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com50tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-78362539342271132102009-06-23T14:54:00.002-04:002009-06-23T15:01:27.771-04:00

V.P. Joe Biden was in town today. One of the people in attendance at his speech was Toledo Mayoral Candidate Keith Wilkowski. Wilkowski's website states:Inspired by Barack Obama's message of change and vision for rebuilding America's cities, Keith founded and chaired "Toledoans for Obama."I guess the V.P. didn't remember him. Here's their exchange today:STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-80343015076486037442009-05-28T08:03:00.003-04:002009-05-28T08:22:14.369-04:00

[This post has nothing to do with news or 13abc. I just needed a place to vent about hockey.]If in some freak chance the Red Wings don't win the Stanley Cup this year, the blame falls squarely on NBC. In the NHL playoffs, when a team wins a series in 4 (Pittsburgh) or 5 (Detroit) games, they are always rewarded with a few extra days off before the next series starts. NBC has forced the NHL the

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-23099506937183785752009-05-14T17:08:00.002-04:002009-05-14T17:19:52.875-04:00

Last week Greg Bilazarian and I spent the day in Holland, Ohio interviewing Joe Wurzelbacher aka Joe the Plumber aka JTP. After the interview I did a quick, ten question, lightning round with Joe. Here it is:STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> I've also been

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-4367626026324259802009-04-23T09:58:00.000-04:002009-04-23T10:03:59.694-04:00

A lot of our staff here at 13 ABC is using twitter. Here's a list of some of our staff using twitter along with the links to their tweets.13 ABC Action NewsDiane Larson - AnchorLee Conklin - AnchorBrian Trauring - News DirectorAnthony Knopps - Assistant News DirectorKristian Brown - Anchor/ReporterMelissa Andrews - Anchor ReporterGreg Bilazarian - ReporterSashem Brey - Anchor/ReporterTodd

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-74824664313704217072009-04-03T18:08:00.003-04:002009-04-03T18:13:37.596-04:00

Some of you may have heard or read about the mayor's comments today at his press conference. At the beginning of the clip you can hear the blade reporter's question about the all-america city application. Enjoy.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-59939258941045669972009-03-30T17:33:00.002-04:002009-03-30T17:36:12.396-04:00

Brief blog today.The mayor plans to reduce city spending by:- 10% across the board pay cut for all employees- 40 police officer layoffs- privatize solid waste collection- reduction in fire department overtime- suspend payments to public employees retirement systemAt the same time he plans to bring more money in by:- reciprocity tax credit change- trash fee increase- increase back tax

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-67781129367663030892009-03-12T07:35:00.003-04:002009-03-12T08:13:08.073-04:00

Hit the road yesterday with Greg Bilazarian to cover area flooding. Our first stop was Defiance. We did a noon live shot where the Maumee and Auglaze rivers meet. That was kind of rocky. We hit at the top of the show, but we didn't get to Defiance until 11:30 and our live truck arrived at 11:50. We pulled it off. Had a live interview with Defiance police chief Tim Tobias. That really wasn't our

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-12529985456884058012009-02-24T17:20:00.003-05:002009-02-24T17:43:40.410-05:00

Shannon Chappell gave birth to her daughter on Saturday. Her husband, Marine Private First Class Shaun Chappell, was 12 thousand miles away at war, but he was right there in the delivery room with her.With the help from a non-profit organization called Freedom Calls, Shaun was hooked up with Toledo Hospital and had a live video conference so he wouldn't miss his daughter's first moments.Here is

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-6862270686946753952009-01-29T10:14:00.003-05:002009-01-29T10:25:39.906-05:00

Here's Jeff Smith's story about how the tough economic times are hitting local charities.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-47606578626817671892009-01-28T17:20:00.005-05:002009-01-28T17:54:09.156-05:00

Roughly 16%.You know those commercials you've been seeing on your TV for the last year about the transfer to digital television?16%What's the date that broadcast stations are going digital? Say it with me...February 17.16%How much are the government coupons worth for buying a dtv converter box? Say it with me again... $40 (you actually get two $40 coupons you know).16%Oh that 16%, what's that all

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-70707399023983562422009-01-08T11:19:00.002-05:002009-01-08T11:21:57.249-05:00

Around the Bend improv group was featured in last night's Action Newsreel. Here's the story.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-80962629844777626512008-12-12T09:29:00.000-05:002008-12-12T09:44:39.818-05:00

Local radio personality Troy Neff was stabbed during a road rage altercation last night. Here is the raw interview Troy gave to Alexis Means today that I shot.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-52280363174880662692008-11-19T11:45:00.001-05:002008-11-19T11:53:03.501-05:00

Wow, I've had over 500 hits in the last 24 hours. I talked with Diane and we decided that the entire raw walk-through disk should be posted. It's about 45 minutes worth of video, so I had to chunk it down into four parts (our server almost choked when I tried to send it all at once). There was a lot of material we had to pick through to put in Sunday's story. Some of the stuff we left out

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-74437757383520839582008-11-16T21:01:00.003-05:002008-11-16T21:01:00.793-05:00

Diane Larson and I were given a tour of Jackie and Aaron Frisch's new home last week and Diane's story will air tonight during the 11 PM newscast. The original piece was nearly 6 minutes long...far too long to fit in a half-hour newscast. Below is the original piece in its entirety. STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190"

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-3462132112803684412008-10-23T20:07:00.003-04:002008-10-23T20:48:04.012-04:00

Yesterday I covered the Sarah Palin rally in Findlay, Ohio. It's been a while since I've covered a big Republican event, but it didn't take long for me to remember how some of the rank and file GOP treat local media. I remember covering the GOP victory party in 2004 in downtown Toledo. Some smart guy walked up to me as I was setting my camera up and told me that he only watches FOX News Channel

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-18696394091181561012008-10-13T14:21:00.004-04:002008-10-13T14:32:48.243-04:00

About a week and a half after returning from the hurricane ravaged Texas coast, Jeff Smith sat down with Kevin Beining, Jason Klocko and me to talk about our experiences covering the aftermath of Hurricane Ike for KTRK in Houston, Texas. Here is Jeff Smith's show, The Roundtable:STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190"

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-66904011129143206272008-10-03T20:46:00.013-04:002008-10-13T12:33:29.464-04:00

Thursday morning started out very similar to Wednesday morning. Again I was supposed to come into work at three in the afternoon. Again, I showed up for work before nine in the morning. And again, I headed out to the east side of Galveston Bay to Chambers County.The day before our live truck operator, Kevin Greer, had struck up a conversation with one of the Chambers County locals who told him

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-73493077225237289732008-09-26T10:55:00.024-04:002008-10-13T11:43:18.435-04:00

I spent a week working for our sister station KTRK ABC13 recently. Crews from all of the ABC O&O stations except Philidelphia headed south to help with coverage of Hurricane Ike. The destruction down there was incredible. What reminded me of going down there in 2005 to cover Katrina and Rita, is how much more real the damage is when you see it in person. We can become desensitized from the images

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-25168063893437813692008-09-25T13:38:00.005-04:002008-09-29T08:43:30.948-04:00

Here are a few pics from my trip. I'm still working on the big one.Thanks for watching.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-69775161787893643582008-09-23T23:27:00.002-04:002008-09-23T23:36:02.406-04:00

I've made it home and I've been hanging out with my family for the last couple of days. I'm putting together 1 big post that will have the whole story and pictures. It is going to take a couple of days so be patient with me. I'm just enjoying being a dad right now, but I'll get the story out.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-56922037510089982662008-09-21T11:50:00.002-04:002008-09-21T12:09:18.957-04:00

Heading down HWY 61 was like driving through another world. I can't tell you how many times we drove over power lines that were strewn across the road, I quit counting at 25. Trees, huge trees were either snapped in half of ripped right from the ground in which they stood. We passed countless boom trucks that power companies from all over the country had dispatched to help with the recovery.

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-90889050116943938532008-09-19T21:30:00.002-04:002008-09-19T21:54:23.115-04:00

I've got some down-time, so here's a rundown of what I've done and seen so far. Kevin and I flew into Houston Monday night. We checked into the station around 10:30 central time. After saying hello to a couple of people we remembered from the last trip, we checked our schedules for the next day and checked into our hotel. Tuesday morning I arrived at KTRK at 8 am. I was not assigned a reporter,

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-7818769773953781202008-09-19T10:57:00.004-04:002008-09-19T11:10:37.148-04:00

I've been working for our sister station, KTRK, in Houston, Texas since last Monday. The destruction down here is incredible. What reminds me of coming down here in 2005 to cover Katrina and Rita, is how much more real the damage is when you see it in person. We can become desensitized from the images on our televisions because they all seem to look the same. When you see a whole waterfront

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-86797795676819221142008-09-15T11:10:00.004-04:002008-09-15T11:42:03.242-04:00

Yes it's been a while since I've posted, but I've been busy. Not with work. My wife gave birth to our first child, Austin Edward Billau. He's 15 days old now. That's not the reason I'm posting now. As you may or may not have read on the right, I traveled to Houston, Texas in 2005 to help our sister station KTRK ABC 13 with their coverage of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. As you know the gulf

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-85347699694922628732008-07-23T17:37:00.003-04:002008-07-24T08:12:25.338-04:00

I interviewed COSI chairman, David Waterman, on July 23, to find out about the levy that will be on the ballot this fall. Basically, they’re putting the exact same levy on the ballot that voters have turned down twice already. In the interview below you’ll hear:Why the levy is on the ballot again.What the COSI board has learned from the previous two attempts.If there has their been an effort to

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-13735797885588272292008-07-17T09:43:00.004-04:002008-07-17T14:39:36.520-04:00

Yesterday Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner called for an outside investigation into alleged questionable activities by Port Authority President Jim Hartung. The Mayor did not give specifics, but did say that there have been internal investigations at the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority in the past but the end reports have never seen the light of day. When asked after the presser if these calls

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-26806250558590083142008-06-18T08:32:00.006-04:002008-06-18T14:13:45.714-04:00

At yesterday's commisioner's meeting, Ben Konop proposed using about $350,000 of economic development funds to create 40, $7.50 an hour jobs, for six months to help the county's unemployed. When his proposal was voted down 2-1, Konop blamed political favors, politics-as-usual and political reasons. Yesterday, the following email was sent to the media:MEDIA ALERTJune 17th, 2008Contact: Gabrielle

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-69225909080952864372008-06-17T12:12:00.003-04:002008-06-17T12:18:32.182-04:00

After covering a press conference on the importance of smoke alarms, Mayor Finkbeiner answers some questions about the former Portside/former COSI building. In the interview you'll hear his claim that a couple of parties have stated interest in the building.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar=

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-6540143225952638042008-05-16T17:27:00.003-04:002008-05-16T17:33:22.085-04:00

Now the final installment on the Freemason's influence on Sandusky, Ohio. Below you will find the entire interview with Gary Miller, a Sandusky-based Mason. Yes, there is a break in the video. No, we aren't hiding anything. Zack's phone rang. We stopped the camera and then restarted a minute later. That's it. No conspiracy. Enjoy the interview.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..."

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-79094316112544391842008-05-16T17:25:00.002-04:002008-05-16T17:27:40.690-04:00

Well, here's last night's story I did with Zack about the Freemason's influence on the design of Sandusky, Ohio.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> As always, thanks for watching!-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-66107851158236968292008-05-15T22:49:00.005-04:002008-05-16T17:32:09.531-04:00

I shot and edited Zack's piece on the Sandusky Masonic street design that aired tonight. More to come. Here are some stills given to me by Gary Miller. Soon I'll post the package that aired and the entire interview with Mr. Miller.Did anybody see the story? What did you think?Thanks for watching!-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-69155483731284577752008-05-14T17:41:00.003-04:002008-05-15T08:33:21.981-04:00

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-9631085783355713062008-05-09T12:44:00.003-04:002008-05-09T12:53:02.668-04:00

Not sure how long our original piece will still have video with it on our website. Below is the broadcast piece that aired May 8, 2008 on 13 ABC Action News at 11.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching!-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-28597346021890685152008-05-08T13:21:00.006-04:002008-05-09T12:43:53.819-04:00

Susan Cenkus was spending time in Cherokee National Forest with her family in April of 2006. While on a hike with her daughter, Elora, and son, Luke, the three were attacked by a black bear. Susan and Luke were seriously injured by the bear, Elora was killed. Below are the four raw interview segments from time Lissa Guyton's time spent with the family. Susan is a strong woman who's inspirational

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-74396709443165655932008-05-06T15:15:00.007-04:002008-05-06T16:11:52.531-04:00

I didn't work with a reporter today. I spent the morning at the station editing the noon show. The noon show is probably the most fun to edit. I got in at 9:30 and started putting stories together. Just when it looked like I might finish my work early (11:15), we've got breaking news and several of the pieces that I just finished working on are dropped from the show all together. Breaking news

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-34478407191219192902008-05-05T13:42:00.004-04:002008-05-05T13:46:10.821-04:00

Nothing groundbreaking today. Just thought this poster was kind of funny. Snapped a shot of it while working on a story about changes to Planned Parenthood.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-43924867306990193162008-04-28T15:38:00.007-04:002008-04-28T18:08:27.029-04:00

And the numbers are in. Lucas County Dog Warden, Tom Skeldon, has made quite a name for himself with the ever-increasing number of pit bulls his department has "processed." If you talk to him he'll tell you (some could even consider it bragging) how the number of pit bulls seized or surrendered under his watch as Lucas County Dog Warden has grown exponentially in the past ten years.Listed below

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-78860449201800442502008-04-25T17:02:00.002-04:002008-04-25T17:08:47.049-04:00

No, really, the musical "Evita" is now playing in Toledo. Today I interviewed Malia Tippets. At age 22, she's playing the role of Eva Peron. More interesting is that "Evita" originally debuted in 1979 - 6 years before Malia was born. Speaking with her, I could tell she knew not only the significance of her role, but Eva Peron's roll in history. The show plays through Sunday at the

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-70341715748961113022008-04-11T17:24:00.002-04:002008-04-11T17:41:41.539-04:00

Today I worked as a show editor, which means I don't leave the building to go shoot anything. I sit in a 5x8 foot cube all day. Who would have wanted to be out in the 70 degree sun anyway? One of my prize finds of the day was some video of a Detroit City Council meeting. I guess they were discussing the problems with their mayor and well, this happened...STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-20199305678208460652008-02-29T08:50:00.003-05:002008-04-11T17:24:11.492-04:00

I went with Lee about a month ago to interview Senator Obama. Here are a couple pics I snapped along the way.* A slightly related side note...I covered a number of President Bush's campaign stops here in Northwest Ohio and one memory that really sticks out from those visits in 2004 is the music. Right before President Bush took the stage the audio guys would crank up Brooks & Dunn's "Only in

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-85723476862215956462008-02-02T22:54:00.000-05:002008-02-06T14:50:55.999-05:00

Last Friday I made the rounds through the western counties in our viewing area with Lissa Guyton. Here are a few still pictures I snapped along the way.Noah and his buddies in Defiance take a couple shots at Lissa with the "good packing" snow.A front-end loader heads down the main drag in Archbold to take on another snow-covered area.In Bryan a dog and her owner don't let the new snow get them

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-91853716345810239382008-01-14T08:10:00.000-05:002008-01-14T08:18:07.706-05:00

Sorry, this should have been posted long ago. No extras or investigative stuff here. It is, however, the full story that aired last November about Matthew Drake and his amazing recovery from injuries sustained while serving in Iraq. This is also a chance for me to publicly thank Matthew and his family for letting us do this story. On a side note, we traveled to Omaha to shoot this story in

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-57930299085347614002007-12-11T17:50:00.000-05:002007-12-11T18:46:09.080-05:00

Last time. I promise. After today I will never mention the Mayor's dog again. The story's over. Today the Ohio Building Authority basically said that because the City of Toledo has leased the 22nd floor, the dog can stay. Why? Because, the Mayor is the head of the city and he can do what he wants.Look, I know this isn't a hard investigation. It was never meant to be. I think the silly music in

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-89037491085874701662007-12-07T17:21:00.000-05:002007-12-07T18:10:08.676-05:00

Glenn Beck broadcasted his national radio show from WSPD's studio earlier this week. During his show he had some unflattering remarks about Toledo and the politicians who run the city. When asked to respond Mr. Beck's remarks, Mayor Finkbeiner said in essence that he doesn't respond to people who talk badly about him or his city. Carty also said that he's not concerned with Mr. Beck's remarks

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-19936354205582800202007-11-22T16:58:00.000-05:002007-11-22T17:09:17.272-05:00

On November 20, Mayor Finkbeiner received a letter from Michael L. Sullivan of the Ohio Building Authority. The letter reads in part:"The recent Channel 13 story revealed that "Scout" is not being used as a therapy dog, but is merely your "pet and companion" as described by Brian Schwartz of your staff. He also stated that "The mayor has no medical condition that requires a medical assistance dog

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-12991509539342499822007-11-22T16:57:00.000-05:002007-11-22T16:58:50.684-05:00

Here's the first story I worked on with Ronnie about the mayor and his dog.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching!-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-9173040213199772862007-10-20T11:07:00.000-04:002007-11-04T20:47:10.037-05:00

I’ve been with 13 ABC for over six years now and my job has allowed me to travel quite a bit. One of my favorite things about traveling out of Toledo, aside from working a story from a new location, is being able to try cuisine from new establishments. I’ve wanted to write a blog like this for a while. I’ve been able to eat this great food and I want to let Toledoans know about these places,

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-66605360232740507522007-09-28T09:38:00.000-04:002007-09-28T09:50:19.488-04:00

"It's just ten cents, what's the big deal?" That's what I thought when we first started this story. Dig a little deeper and you'll find that it's a big scam with big money. At the top of this complex scam, the big players are making millions. Correction, "were making millions." Below is the story I did yesterday that has our exclusive video. Special thanks to TPD Sgt. Joe Heffernan and TPD Sgt.

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-4080825497252588182007-09-14T10:26:00.000-04:002007-09-14T10:29:10.665-04:00

This video shows the eradication team searching from the sky and then the seizure of the plants by the teams on the ground.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> *Both of the eradication videos are kind of long so it may take a minute to load the video.Thanks for

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-19746801809171630732007-09-14T10:24:00.000-04:002007-09-14T10:26:21.971-04:00

This is part one of two of the video I shot of the marijuana eradication in Sececa County. Most of this video is from a house that had a growing operation inside.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Thanks for watching!-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-80600333419671874322007-09-06T13:05:00.000-04:002007-09-06T13:28:06.225-04:00

A big thanks to all the members of the Seneca County Marijuana Eradication Team that let me tag along on Wednesday. Here are a few pictures I snapped with my cellphone. Package and Raw video to follow.- Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-71003002309019509802007-07-21T21:06:00.000-04:002007-07-21T21:21:49.995-04:00

Here is some of the b-roll I didn't use in my Festival Friday package yesterday. The first set of clips is from the Ottawa County Fair. The second set is from the Archbold Carp Festival. The Lion's Club of Archbold were prepping some "Fresh Feesh" for the fryer. No it wasn't really carp. I'm told it was "Fresh Frozen North Atlantic Whiting." Would that be an oxymoron? I digress. Here's the story

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-15895633524119868182007-07-18T08:48:00.000-04:002007-07-19T08:54:31.070-04:00

1:00 P.M. - Time Mayor Finkbeiner's press conference near Southwyck was supposed to start Tuesday afternoon.1:35 P.M. - Time Mayor Finkbeiner arrived at the press conference location.Moving on.Here are some photos from last weeks adventures.The Killa' Grillaz' at the Delta Chicken Festival. I can't even remember how many thousands of pounds of chicken they were planning on cooking at the

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-64844888940083920162007-07-11T17:44:00.000-04:002007-07-12T07:24:06.074-04:00

I've had some time off recently and I used it to get out of Toledo and head to my family's cabin in Northern Michigan. One day when I was in town I had the chance to stop by the now-home for the USCG Icebreaker Mackinaw. She's now a piece of history, literally. The ship is now a museum ship docked at a pier in Mackinaw City, Michigan.Here's some photos I snapped of the Mackinaw while I was up

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-4962415553333420132007-06-25T09:39:00.000-04:002007-06-25T10:38:12.637-04:00

Disclaimer...this photo was edited together from three separate photos.I'm writing this blog to congratulate all of those involved in the construction of the new Veterans’ Glass City Skyway. I've been with 13ABC for over five and a half years now, so I have covered many of the stories having to do with the construction of the bridge. I felt, as many of you probably did, that the project seemed

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-25734757735697718152007-06-20T17:47:00.000-04:002007-06-20T17:58:24.809-04:00

Why they let me do it, I don't know. Every once in a while the powers that be have me do something on air. I've been part of several pieces included in the Powers Pack. I did a satellite shot from Houston, Texas shortly after Hurricane Katrina. This time with Theresa Pollick off on a Festival Friday, they asked me to do the story by myself. Here is my report.*STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-79334729468590352812007-06-12T12:00:00.000-04:002007-06-12T12:04:45.332-04:00

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged and maybe that’s because of the season. For some reason, summer is always the slow news time of year. I believe it’s a combination of school being out, the fall elections are too far off to demand significant coverage yet, and most businesses are geared down for the summer because their employees are on vacation. The first half of this year has been very busy

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-22941525490277780242007-05-30T17:03:00.000-04:002007-05-30T17:44:37.375-04:00

Well, another Indianapolis 500 in the books and it was good one. Good except for the rain delay and the early end to the race, but it was still good. I think if the rain would have held off, the Penske boys and Danica would have all challenged for the lead on the final lap. However, weather is always one of the factors and Franchitti did lead the most important lap of the day. It was a good

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-27210611041463812212007-05-17T09:49:00.000-04:002007-05-17T09:53:09.409-04:00

Yesterday 16 servicemen from the 180th Fighter Wing returned home from Iraq. Unfortunately due to time constraints we were only able to include a limited number of the reunions in our package. Here is my raw video of the men returning. To the servicemen, thank you for what you do and welcome home.STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192"

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-10706475419248242132007-05-11T20:52:00.000-04:002007-05-11T21:18:12.618-04:00

Ah yes, and then you can have lunch. Chris blogged about the difficulty of finding time for lunch. Some days you’re a man down because someone is sick. Other days people are OOTL to work on special projects. Some days you’re just simply understaffed. Today was one of those rare days where “and then you can have lunch” happened. In fact, lunch was the highlight of my day. You see, that trip

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-59687804862461372582007-05-09T19:11:00.000-04:002007-05-09T19:25:12.160-04:00

Ah, breaking news. The big one. It can bring out the best in a news operation. Yesterday I was traveling on I-75 with Alexis Means, headed to Cedar Point to do an interview about why media day was being cancelled. Not the most exciting story but as Chris mentions in his blog, the beast must be fed. Around Phillips Ave., we saw the large plume of black smoke north of us. Trying to get out of a

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-85381886175414337882007-05-01T12:47:00.000-04:002007-05-01T12:52:28.718-04:00

This will be the last post having to do with distracted school bus drivers. We’ve received a lot of feedback, both good and bad, on the issue. We didn’t do this story to sensationalize the issue or get drivers in trouble. We did the story to raise awareness of the issue. It’s true, being a school bus driver is a thankless job. While we were shooting this story, the vast majority of drivers were

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-11760723138340466712007-04-29T21:31:00.000-04:002007-04-29T23:07:01.414-04:00

In case you missed the I-Team’s investigation into distracted school bus drivers, here is the story that aired in its entirety. Some of the clips that didn’t make air are available at the 13 ABC Photog Blog page. STANDBY="Loading Windows Media Player components..." TYPE="application/x-oleobject">WIDTH="192" HEIGHT="190" ShowControls="1" ShowStatusBar="0" ShowDisplay="0" autostart="0"> Let us

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-61912764559218992202007-04-18T18:03:00.000-04:002007-04-18T18:31:16.813-04:00

Sometimes covering local news stories can be very depressing. There are a lot of negative stories that are reported on. One of the few escapes is when we get a tour here at WTVG. Our Newsreel segment focuses on the positives happening in our community. As you may have seen in today's Newsreel segment, some students from Luckey Elementary came to visit the station this morning. Their tour guides

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2815335046248992706.post-18759172514582169052007-04-17T12:16:00.000-04:002007-04-17T17:07:05.937-04:00

Illegal drugs...weapons...and the people bringing them into our communities. These pictures offer a snapshot into the dangerous work officers with the Seneca County Drug Task Force face each night on the job.Task Force officers surround a suspect's car.Task Force officers pull a suspect from a car.Officers take down another suspect.Evidence seized by the Drug Task Force during a bust.-Billau

Justin Billauhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495916771935699370noreply@blogger.com0