Born on a mountaintop in Tennessee … wait, that was that other Davy. This one was born on a cattle and wheat farm on the Great Plains of North Dakota. Farm-fresh common sense, work ethic and imagination forged in the fields of great grains. Like spaghetti? Thank my dad. After an Honor Society high school career in Lakota, N.D., I attended junior college on a basketball scholarship where I repeatedly demonstrated that white men indeed can’t jump. But I did manage an associate’s degree in wildlife management. From there, a semester at the University of North Dakota, where I started to pursue a background in broadcasting and a minor in goofing off, so… To further educational opportunities and real-world experience, I enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1974 and eventually became part of the first all-volunteer army. I served three years as a radio/TV information specialist with extra training in newsprint and leadership. The bulk of my tour was at Fort Lewis, Wash., and I made a note to return to the great state of Washington one day. Honorably discharged in 1977 I returned to North Dakota and Minot State University, where I received degrees in communications and psychology. While attending school I worked as a radio DJ and a TV news reporter at a local combo operation. It was there that I discovered that what was taught in classroom didn’t always square with what was going on in the real world. Good to know. From there I moved to Blacksburg, Va., and a radio/TV producer job for Virginia Tech University -- Go, Gobblers! Go, Hokies! Two years on the East Coast was enough and I headed west to the hippie enclave of Eureka, Calif., for my first TV news director/anchorman gig. Yes, I had a mustache and comparisons to Ron Burgundy would one day be appropriate … just keep them “classy.” At a news guy conference in Las Vegas I met legendary newsman T.J. Close, who was from Washington state! Here was my callback to the Evergreen State, but I wound up on the never-green side of the Cascades. T.J hired me to come to Yakima and KIMA-TV in the winter of 1982. I worked a couple of years there, then spent 10 years across town as news director/anchor at KAPP-TV. I tried my hand at TV sales and radio sales and ultimately got a morning talk show radio gig for about two years on KCHT. (K-chat. Get it? Me, neither) By then KNDO-TV, the only TV station in town I hadn’t worked for, was looking for a news director/anchorman and they came calling based on my track record of past success and the fact that I work cheap. That was a successful five-year run, but the station was sold and the new owners wanted their own people in place, so early in 2001 I was about to be out of a job when KIT’s manager called and asked me to breakfast. Best meal ever! LOTS of bacon. Sixteen years later the Morning News with Dave and Lance rolls on as Yakima’s most popular morning radio show, presenting a variety of news , sports, weather, talk and fun -- Information and good conversation wrapped in our tell-it-like-it-is kinda style. We champion our advertisers, we pull for the underdogs, we love kids, veterans, seniors, animals, America and everything else that’s good and true that list doesn’t cover. We are A.M Proud with conservative values and a love for the people of the Yakima Valley. And it sure beats working on the farm.
Dave Ettl
Will You Attend? Yakima’s 4th of July – Bigger & Better in 2022
So let's gather together, set aside our differences and share in the communal enjoyment that freedom affords us all. Let's all have an All-American 4th of July.
Use Cannabis In WA State, Expect To Spend More Time In Hospital
Washington State will no longer refer to Marijuana as Marijuana because of racism in the early days of the 20th century,
Supreme Court Give Ok To WA, Coach’s Post Game Mid-Field Prayers
It took seven years to get a two-letter answer. The high court ruled in a 6-3 decision that the answer to those questions was a “no.”
Urgent Need! Red Cross Will Trade Shark Week Swag For Blood!
Come to give blood in July to automatically be entered for a chance to win an exclusive Shark Week merchandise package
Mental Health Issues? How About Script For A Hawaiian Vacation?
Going on vacation has a positive impact on mental health issues and even conditions such as dementia.
Wow, What A Line Up! The Music Acts Are Set – Hop Country Fest
The lineup is now set for this fall's Hop Country Music Festival. so, let's fill out your dance card.
Young People Wanted To Make A Difference, Sign Up, Serve Yakima
Often young people don't get involved in public service because they don't know where or how. Here's one answer. Serve your city.
Limited Tax Base -Yakima In Line For Portion of Fed Make-Up Money
All the land in Yakima County isn't privately owned and that means a smaller land base to tax raise money for services.
Hey CNN – How Low Will You Go Before You Listen To The People?
GIGO is a concept common to computer science and mathematics that basically says- that the quality of output is determined by the quality of the input....that holds true for News Programs as well.
The Music Of Star Wars Attracts Quite The Crowd In Yakima
The soundtrack of our lives...and that's no exaggeration....If you love the movies, you know the work of John Williams.
Dominion Dominates :The Dinos Are Big And So Are The Thrills
What I didn't know then is just how big of a business the dinosaur world would become.
The Future Face Of The US Is Diverse-Washington State Is There
Demographers now calculate that America is likely to become a “majority-minority” nation sometime in the 2040s.