N.C. A&T Alumna Oliver Shares Journey of Winning Five Emmys
Chanelle Oliver ’08 has mastered the gift of knowing what makes a good story for her TV audience. Throughout her career as a journalist, she has been awarded not one, but five Emmy awards.
Oliver is a segment producer for Good Day DC on Fox 5 DC/ WTTG, an owned-and-operated TV station of the Fox Broadcasting Company, in Washington, D.C.
“A good story to me has a unique element that is informative and entertaining to our audience. Sometimes I find myself in the grocery stores discovering stories from people who just want to share what’s going in the community,” said Oliver. “I believe this is what has set me apart in the journalism industry by listening to the people in the community.”
Oliver received her bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communications with a concentration in electronic media in 2008. In college, she was active in the National Association of Black Journalists and the NABJ Short Course hosted by North Carolina A&T.
“N.C. A&T prepared me for success and it was people like Mrs. Gail Wiggins, Mrs. Nagatha Tonkins, Dr. Teresa Styles, Dr. Sheila Whitley, and the late Dr. Tamrat Mereba that paved the way for my career,” said Oliver. “A&T is the foundation that helps me to remember where I come from as an Aggie and to always deliver quality content.”
Chanelle Oliver and Issa Rae 
Chanelle Oliver and Vivaca A. Fox 
Chanelle Oliver and Taraji P. Henson 
Chanelle Oliver and Simone Biles 
Chanelle Oliver and Michael Ealy 
Chanelle Oliver and Mary Wilson of The Supremes 
Chanelle Oliver and John Witherspoon 
Chanelle Oliver and Jackee Harry 
Chanelle Oliver and Anthony Hamilton
After graduation, Oliver secured a job as an assignment editor with WXII-TV, an NBC affiliate in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, that turned into a full-time position as a morning show producer.
“My days working at WXII resulted in sacrificing my weekends and weekdays. However, these were the dues I paid in my journalism career,” said Oliver. “I was able to secure a producer job closer to my hometown, Woodbridge, Virginia, at WJLA-TV, an ABC affiliate in Washington, D.C.”
When Oliver worked at ABC-7, she secured her first regional Emmy for the Navy yard shooting that took place in 2013. She received her second Emmy for the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington. In 2015, she received her third Emmy for the Baltimore riots, and in 2016, her fourth Emmy for the apartment explosion in Silver Spring, Maryland. Lastly, in 2017, she was awarded her fifth Emmy for the congressional ballpark shooting in Alexandria, Virginia.
“Out of the five Emmys I have received, I am truly proud of the work I produced for the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s March on Washington,” said Oliver. “However, it is unfortunate that majority of my awards came from tragedy, so my work for Dr. King is the highlight of my career as a journalist being able to pay tribute to his life.”
According to the National Academy of Television Arts and Science, the regional Emmys are essential in helping honor the works of deserving individuals in local TV through a regional outreach. Like the national awards, each region goes through its own rigorous nomination and voting procedures. Regardless of winning on a national or regional level, all recipients are Emmy Award winners.
In 2019, Oliver joined Fox 5 Washington, D.C., as a segment producer for the morning show, “Good Day DC.”
“Currently, I spend my days booking celebrities and public figures like Taraji P. Henson, LaLa Anthony, Lamar Odom, and public health expert Dr. Anthony Fauci for segments,” she said. “One of my favorite guests has been John Travolta, who is the most down-to-earth person you would ever meet and he is super sweet.”
In the future, Oliver plans to continue producing media and following in the footsteps of media moguls Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry.
