May Day Melee Leads to KTTV/Fox 11 Emmy

KTTV's coverage of last year’s May Day melee in MacArthur Park -- in which two of the station's staffers were injured -- has netted the Fox-owned outlet a pair of Emmys. (Here's a clip above.)

KTTV picked up the awards Saturday night at the 60th annual Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards, handed out at the TV Academy’s Leonard H. Goldenson Theater in North Hollywood.

As it did last year, NBC-owned KNBC led the total Emmy tally, netting eight. PBS outfit KCET, which tied KNBC last year for most wins, scored the second most this time around with six.

Also, KCBS continued its streak in the category for newscasts 35 minutes or less, as its "CBS2 News at 11," anchored by Paul Magers and Laura Diaz, won for the fourth year in a row -- the first time any station has achieved that feat. Sister station KCAL won the Emmy for newscasts over 35 minutes.

KTTV's Emmys include one for live coverage of an unscheduled news event for its coverage of last year's May Day march and resulting melee. The station's entire news team will share that prize.

The station's follow-up report, "After the Melee," also earned KTTV an Emmy. Reporter Phil Shuman and producers Pete Noyes and Debbie Kim were behind "Melee," which won for news special.

KTTV reporter Christina Gonzales and camerawoman Patti Ballaz were hurt during the May 1, 2007, clash, in which Los Angeles police officers used batons and force to break up a rally. This July, the LAPD brought disciplinary charges against 17 officers and two sergeants for their roles in the incident.

"After the Melee" won against tough competition: KTLA's "A Tribute to Hal Fishman," which aired during the "KTLA Prime News" slot following the death of the legendary anchor.

(Originally written for Variety.)