#MediaMonday – Shawndrea Thomas
Today’s #MediaMonday comes to us from Shawndrea Thomas, a 9 p.m. anchor with CW Tucson, investigative reporter with KGUN 9 and host of the new podcast “Intrigued Full Effect,” which focuses on cases involving people of color who don’t get media coverage for their missing persons and cold cases.
Shawndrea, time to share!
As a child I spent a lot of time watching any and everything on television, and I love to talk to people and I still do to this day (go figure now I get paid to do it!!).
I decided to get into journalism when I was around 15 years old, after my family experienced discrimination while looking for a place to live. I told my mom “Someone should know what these people are doing!” and that sparked the fire in me to become a journalist. From that moment, I wanted to be a voice for those who need it.
I earned two bachelors degrees from Arizona State University in broadcast journalism and interdisciplinary studies with an emphasis on intercultural communication and black history.
Throughout my career, I’ve reported in St. Louis, Orlando, Columbus, Ohio and Midland, Texas before I arrived in Tucson in May of 2019. I also spent some time working in radio in Phoenix and Odessa, Texas. When I was at Radio Disney Phoenix, I was known as “MC Shawnee.”
Now, I am living my dream as a journalist who’s passionate about making a difference. I recently finished up a year-long project as the lead investigative reporter in a cold case series for Oxygen network called “The Disappearance of Phoenix Coldon.” Through my work in the series, I uncovered new leads, conducted exclusive interviews and discovered new details in the case. I still get leads on my social media that I send to investigators.
Since finishing up the investigative series, I decided to continue my work to help families spread the word about their missing loved ones. With that goal in mind, I decided to venture into new territory and am now inviting family members and friends of the missing to share their stories on my new podcast called “Intrigued Full Effect.” It focuses on cases involving people of color and I give loved ones a platform to fully discuss the impact of the case on the family and community as a whole. In the podcast, I also discuss unsolved crimes, strange crimes and other topics.
In my work, I’m driven by a desire to expose injustice and am committed to telling stories that truly reflect the community I live in. I’m also a member of the National Association of Black Journalists.
Some fun facts about me: I’m a total foodie, I like to try random foods and I’ve been known to do one-minute Tasty Tuesday food reviews that I post on my social media. I also like to try difficult and unique recipes then I move on to my next favorite thing; exercise to work it all off. I can whip up some pretty good grub, but my weakness is baking. I’m a horrible baker; it’s something I’m always trying to work on. 🙂
I’m the second oldest of eight children and I love to spend time with my family and friends. I also binge watch everything I missed throughout the week because of my work schedule – and yes, I play video games with my husband.
The best way to contact me is through email at shawndrea.thomas@kgun9.com. I think its always best to reach out at least a day before an event happens via email and social media to make sure I can get a chance to pitch. Stories can easily get missed via email because we get so many on a daily basis.
You can also follow me on Twitter at @ShawndreaThomas, Instagram at @shawndreat and Facebook at @ShawndreaThomasNews.
