Tom Crabtree - Anchor
Email: tcrabtree@wspa.com
His 33 years in television and radio news put Tom Crabtree among the most experienced and versatile broadcast journalists in the Carolinas.
This native Carolinian anchors the 5:00, 5:30, 6:00 and 11:00 pm newscasts on News Channel 7. Tom also produces and anchors "Voice of the Viewer," a special feature each Thursday on News Channel 7 at 5:30 that gives viewers a unique opportunity to speak out on issues involving the station's news coverage.
Tom was named 2006 Anchor of the Year by the South Carolina Broadcasters Association. He was runner-up for the SCBA honor in 2005 and 2007.
During Tom's years on the anchor desk, News Channel 7 has won several Southeastern Emmys for Best Newscast and received other Emmy nominations.
Tom is in great demand as a community public speaker and has emceed the Miss South Carolina Pageant statewide broadcast. He leads News Channel 7's community outreach on the 2009 transition to DTV (digital television) by educating church and civic groups about the new technology.
Tom also gives his time to numerous community causes. You'll see him at the March of Dimes Walk for Babies, the American Cancer Society Relay for Life,
Alzheimer's Association fundraisers, and the National Day of Prayer, plus he has been a blood donor for more than 30 years.
During his time at N.C. State University (B.A. Speech Communication 1977), Tom spent a year as an intern with WITN-TV in Washington, North Carolina and was news director of NCSU's campus radio station.
His early career included news director positions at radio stations in Rocky Mount, Roanoke Rapids and Salisbury, North Carolina. While in Salisbury (WSTP/WRDX-FM) Tom was the play-by-play voice of Catawba College football.
Tom has lived in Spartanburg since 1981 when he joined WSPA Radio as a reporter, then became news director. In 1983, Tom joined News Channel 7. Before going to the anchor desk fulltime, Tom held the positions of assignment editor, Spartanburg bureau reporter, Greenville bureau chief, and weekend anchor.
Tom's reporting focus in recent years has included crime trends and crime prevention, highway safety, the recovery and preservation of the Civil War submarine H.L. Hunley, and politics. During the 2009 political season, Tom has brought his viewers exclusive interviews with presidential candidates John McCain, Fred Thompson, Mike Huckabee and Hillary Clinton.
Tom is also one of News Channel 7's most experienced hurricane reporters, his credits including coverage of hurricanes Hugo (1989), Bonnie (1998), Charley (2004) and Katrina (2005).
His documentary on South Carolina's confederate flag controversy received a first-place award from the S.C. Associated Press.
In 1998, he reported live from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on John Glenn's historic return to outer space aboard a space shuttle.
In June 2007, he anchored live from Charleston just hours after the Sofa Super Store fire that claimed the lives of nine firefighters.
Tom's career with News Channel 7 has taken him to several countries. In 1994, his reports from England and France were featured in an award-winning series about the 50th anniversary of the D-Day invasion. In 1998, he toured Israel at the invitation of the Israeli government for a series of reports on that nation's 50th anniversary. In 1999, Tom visited Switzerland for a series of reports on that country's close economic and cultural ties with Upstate South Carolina.
Tom is also well-known in the western Carolinas as a musician and singer. He leads the Spartanburg-based band "Rock and Roll Reunion," which he formed in 1994. He also performs as a solo guitarist/singer (to see Tom perform on YouTube, visit www.tomcrabtreelive.com and click on "music videos").
As a native of the Carolinas, Tom has a unique rapport with News Channel 7's audience. He grew up on a farm in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and has spent his entire life in the Carolinas.
Tom and his wife Gayle have two daughters, Lauren and Kayla. The Crabtrees are members of St. Paul United Methodist Church in Spartanburg. Tom's hobbies include basketball, guitar, rock and roll music, and traveling in the Carolinas.
