Kurtis Ming
Eleven-time Emmy Award-winner Kurtis Ming is CBS13's consumer investigative reporter and anchors the CBS13 News at 4 and 5:30p.
Since joining CBS13 in 2003, he's held the position of general assignment reporter and weekend anchor, before starting the "Call Kurtis" consumer advocacy program, which has helped viewers get back millions of dollars and resolve thousands of disputes since 2006.
Since arriving in Sacramento, he's covered everything from the Scott Peterson murder trial to the gubernatorial campaign of a porn star. Kurtis has investigated unscrupulous businesses and exposed problems in state and local government resulting in passing new laws. He's also reported on terrorism from Pakistan, tensions between North and South Korea from the DMZ, and traveled to Mexico to assist viewers with a timeshare refund. He's reported on natural disasters too — from an assignment in the Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina to trips to the shores of Phuket, Thailand and Samoa tracking progress following the tsunamis that affected each of those countries.
During his international travels in September 2010, Kurtis experienced a major earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, and found himself reporting for a national audience back home.
Kurtis is a 42-time regional Emmy Award nominee and eleven-time winner. His work has also been honored by The National Press Club, the Radio and Television News Directors Association and with a California Journalism Award.
His honored investigation into Walmart's gift receipt practices sparked a call from Congress for a federal investigation. After exposing how the California Medical Board allowed doctors with drug and alcohol problems to continue treating patients, the state got rid of its problem-plagued doctor's diversion program. He exposed a security flaw in a state website exposing the personal information of tens of thousands of unemployed Californians. Another investigation prompted the DMV to overhaul its database after he uncovered a flaw that caused Californians to wrongfully receive parking tickets.
In 2015, the Radio Television Digital News Foundation selected Kurtis as a fellow to travel to Europe and meet with top-level German political, business and media figures and visit the EU and NATO in Belgium. Kurtis traveled with a delegation of American journalists to Pakistan in 2013 as an East West Center fellow. In 2011, he graduated from the FBI's Citizens' Academy. He has been a long-standing member of the Investigative Reporters and Editors and has taught investigative journalism in Vietnam. In 2016, the Consumer Federation of California honored him as the Consumer Journalist of the Year.
The South San Francisco native started his broadcast career in 1996 as a radio reporter and anchor at WERS-FM in Boston. He founded Emerson College's student-run television station WEBN and worked behind the scenes for Dateline NBC, KCOP-TV in Los Angeles, and KGO-TV in San Francisco before reporting for KRCR-TV in Redding, California and KTVN-TV in Reno, Nevada.
Kurtis has a degree in broadcast journalism from Emerson College in Boston.
13 Questions With ... Kurtis Ming
- Where did you grow up? South San Francisco
- What is your ideal scenario for a day off? Relaxing on the couch
- How did you decide to be a reporter/anchor? The Loma Prieta Earthquake in 1989. I realized the importance of journalists.
- What was your favorite toy growing up? My video camera and bedroom converted into a studio.
- Where is your favorite local place to eat? I enjoy a good Japanese Steakhouse.
- Do you have any pets? 1 dog. She's cute.
- What is your favorite social media platform? Facebook. You can find me at Facebook.com/CallKurtis
- If you didn't work in TV news what would you be doing? Something involving world travel.
- What is the most memorable story you've covered at CBS13/CW31? Too many to count. Covering the aftermath of Katrina was an amazing assignment.
- What is your favorite season? Summer
- When do you wake up on a workday? Weekend? When the dog licks my nose or toes.
- Why do you love Northern California? I love the beauty, the microclimates, and the facts you can be from the beach to the snow in 2-hours.
- Where was your best vacation ever? I have had some amazing trips to Southeast Asia.
