RICH LENZ
NEWS DIRECTOR

Rich arrives at work each day thrilled to lead a diverse, experienced and energetic news team towards their weekly goal; producing the most in-depth, informative and yes, entertaining state-wide newscast in Oklahoma.

Rich has spent the bulk of his forty-year career as a sports and news anchor in Oklahoma, working for the top-rated stations in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. He is a three-time Emmy winner and has been honored with multiple awards by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters.

Rich considers covering Hurricane Katrina, before, during and after it’s landfall in 2005, to be the seminal experience of his journalism career. Working for WDSU in New Orleans, Rich says coverage of the storm (which left his own house in seven feet water before eventually being bulldozed) exposed him to the best and worst of an unprecedented natural and man-made disaster; heroism, malfeasance, tragedy, triumph, corruption – you name it and Rich covered it daily for more than two years. It taught him a multitude of lessons that informed and improved his work in ways he never imagined.

As a sportscaster, Rich has covered six Super Bowls, dozens of major Bowl Games, National Football Championships, multiple College World Series, Men’s and Women’s Final Fours, in addition to daily coverage of the NFL, the NBA, the PGA Tour and college football powerhouses like Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Florida State and LSU.

Rich has been married to his wife Leslie since 1990. They have two children, Dr. Cameron Lenz, a physician in Tyler, Tx., and Claire, who will sooner enter her final year of Law School at the University of Tulsa. In his spare time, he writes and records music (winning a regional Emmy in 2016 for Best Original Composition) and plays golf whenever he finds the time.

JASON DOYLE
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

Jason Doyle has been the executive producer for the Oklahoma News Report since August 2019. He also serves as a reporter, political correspondent, business, and economics writer, and even picks up the camera from time to time.

Jason has worked as a broadcaster for thirty years and a professional journalist for nearly 25 years working in radio, television, print and digital in Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri.

When he’s away from the OETA newsroom, Jason enjoys making competition level BBQ and working on independent media projects with friends.

One of Jason’s favorite stories to follow for the Oklahoma News Report is the development of the cannabis industry since State Question 788 was approved and the evolving situation since the U.S. Supreme Court’s McGirt vs. Oklahoma decision.

STEVE SHAW
REPORTER

Steve Shaw is a 1988 graduate of the “vaunted” University of Missouri School of Journalism. He’s worked as a Reporter at WTOC in Savannah, GA., WFTX in Fort Myers, FL, WDAF in Kansas City, MO., KSTP in Minneapolis, MN, and KWTV in Oklahoma City. Steve began his career as a News Photographer in ’88 at WYFF in Greenville, SC, then at WFLA in Tampa, FL. from 1990 to 1993.

In 2010 Steve won an Emmy Award for “Breaking News” after a Maplewood, MN Police Officer was shot and killed while sitting in his patrol car. In 2007, Steve was an integral reason KSTP won a “National Headliner Award” for their coverage of the tragic “35W Bridge Collapse.”

In March of 2022, the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters awarded Steve First Place for “Investigative Reporting” for an Illegal Cockfighting series that aired on “The Oklahoma News Report” in September of 2021. Steve says he’s been a St. Louis Cardinals’ baseball nut since he was in First Grade. He also still follows the Arizona Cardinals’ even though they left St. Louis more than 30 years ago. Steve is kept in line by his wife Debi, who works in “Investigations” at the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office…and four stepsons.

Shaw says he defines his more than three-decade long career by something legendary actor Al Pacino said in the 1995 epic Michael Mann film “Heat.” “All I am is what I’m going after.”

TAELYR JACKSON
REPORTER

Taelyr Jackson has been a reporter for the Oklahoma News Report since August 2021. She is a proud graduate of Langston University where she pursued her passion in Broadcast Journalism. During her time at Langston, she was a radio personality for the school's station KALU 89.3 FM. She also assisted in creating content for a student-led newscast called Lions Eye.

In 2018 Taelyr became Miss Langston University and competed for the title of Miss Oklahoma. When Taelyr is not covering education stories, she likes to spend time with family and assisting with the production of the Miss Langston pageant.

CASSIDY MUDD
REPORTER

Before joining the Oklahoma News Report, Cassidy Mudd worked as an assignment editor and digital producer at a local news station. She later served as News Director for NPR’s KWGS News in Tulsa, with her work being featured on ABC, CBS, and NBC affiliates across the country.

Cassidy graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism. During her college years, she studied audio and video production and hosted multiple live broadcasts featuring local and statewide musicians.

Outside of work, Cassidy enjoys engaging with the Oklahoma City community. She's happiest when spending time with her family or exploring the great outdoors. A Tulsa native, Cassidy takes pride in her Oklahoma roots.

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