Susan Taylor

Updated 1:33 PM PST, Tue, Aug 4, 2009

Print Email Share TWITTER FACEBOOK

"When all is said and done... when you take away the special effects and all the bells and whistles, we are storytellers, plain and simple. Telling stories that have substance, that are powerful and meaningful... that's the challenge."

Telling stories is what NBC 7/39 News Anchor Susan Taylor does for a living, and it has taken her around the world. Taylor solo anchors the 4 and co-anchors the 5, 6 and 11 p.m. newscasts with Marty Levin. But she's a seasoned reporter who has covered some of the most important world events of the past quarter century.

"I am a witness to history," says Taylor who has been on the front lines of the Persian Gulf War, the O.J.Simpson trial, the Palestinian uprising in Israel, the Superbowl and Haitan riots in Miami, the downfall of Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, the Rodney King Civil rights trial, numerous wildfires, the Northridge Earthquake, following the war with Iraq and the return of the U.S.S. Constellation.

"It's ironic," says Taylor. "I've interviewed presidents and Prime Ministers, Nobel Peace prize winners, celebrities and professional athletes, but the story that always brings tears to my eyes involved two everyday women, who had been pen pals for 50 years. One woman lived in South Florida. The other in England. They had never met... never even spoke on the phone. But they had written each other for five decades, chronicling their lives on paper.

"They started writing in kindergarten, and continued through World War II... through marriage, kids, divorce and death. The woman in England was seriously ill and the two thought they would never meet. So we took the woman from Florida to Bristol England to meet her friend.

"And I'll never forget that morning, as we walked up to the front door, rang the bell and waited. I looked at the woman from Florida and saw 50 years of memories flooding her face. And when that door opened and they looked at each other and reached out to hug each other, with laughter and tears... that is a moment forever etched in my mind.

"That is the power of television; telling unforgettable stories, while affecting positive change."
Taylor's career began in Boston at WCVB-TV where she was a writer, associate producer and location scout. After co-producing the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for the Commonwealth Games in Canada, she became a news reporter and anchor at ITV in Edmonton.

Susan returned to the United States and became a producer at WFSB-TV in Hartford, Conn. before moving to WFAA in Dallas to anchor the morning news.

She moved on to KFMB-TV in San Diego where she first worked with Marty Levin and Jim Laslavic. Taylor then traveled east to become an anchor/reporter at WTVJ in Miami, Fla. and five years later came back to the west coast to work for KTTV in Los Angeles.

Susan later realized, "I grew up in New England, but San Diego has always felt like home to me."
Taylor's work has been repeatedly honored. In Los Angeles, she received a Golden Mike and an Emmy for a documentary on teen drinking and driving. Her series on a homeless mentally ill woman was recognized with both a Golden Mike and an award from the Associated Press Radio and Television Association. In Miami, her documentary on Israel's 40th anniversary earned numerous awards.

And in San Diego, she's received emmys for her reports on the Harmony Grove Fire and her series on a terminally ill woman in the last stages of her life.

Susan holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Broadcasting and Film from Boston University.

She is an avid skiier, biker, sailor and rollerblader. Taylor is married and has one child.

"I've been very lucky. I have a job that I love. I live in a city that I consider paradise. You can set all kinds of goals for yourself. Some you'll achieve. Many you won't. Joy and disappointment is a part of life. And I've come to realize that the line (as cliched as it is) is true: "The real joy... is in the journey."

Drop Susan a line: susan.taylor@nbcuni.com.