An Iowa television anchor who announced Friday that he is leaving the news industry used his final broadcast to criticize what he described as sanitized journalism.
Dustin Nolan, who has spent years waking up early with viewers as the morning anchor for Davenport’s KWQC-TV, announced he is leaving the news industry for good, and he used his parting moments to take a serious swing at the state of modern journalism. In a passionate goodbye, where he became emotional at times, Nolan thanked the community for letting him into their living rooms every morning.
“I have chosen to step away from the news industry,” Nolan said. “Before I say goodbye, I just want to say, I hope every one of you that’s allowed me to be a part of your mornings knows just how important that I have taken this job [and] how much it means to me that you’ve trusted me these past few years to bring you the news in the morning. I promise you, I’ve given you everything I have. I’ve never tried to be perfect, or what many think a newsman should be, supposed to be, but I have always done my best to be transparent, bringing you the facts, and I’ve always been myself.”
Nolan said local news organizations should do more than follow trends or deliver “sanitized news.”
“I’ve always believed that we, as a local news station, owe you, the viewers, the best that we can do, because without you, none of us would be able to do this job,” the departing anchor continued. “I also believe that we, as a local news station, have to be more than trends or sanitized news, because it makes people feel uncomfortable. That’s why the facts matter, and that’s why we do what we do here. We have to take people out of their bubbles and comfort zones and make them think about the world we all live in.”
KWQC serves the Quad Cities region, including communities in both Iowa and Illinois. Nolan joined the station in 2022, according to his professional profile. He also used his farewell broadcast to recognize his wife, Jenna Nolan, who co-anchors alongside him at the station.
“The hardest part of this job for me is the realization that I won’t be working with Jenna anymore, because she isn’t just the greatest co-anchor on the news desk, but she is the greatest co-anchor in life as well,” Nolan added.
Nolan did not publicly disclose what prompted his departure or what career path he intends to pursue next.
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