J.R. Stone
People often ask why I decided to get into news and to be honest, I actually always had this idea of becoming a baseball player. It was my first sport, the one I loved above all else, and I thought that if the guys on TV could do it, who's to say I couldn't? I played baseball when I started college but at one point I, like so many others, realized it wasn't going to happen. Michael Jordan once said, "I can accept failure, everyone fails at something, but I can't accept not trying." I live by those words. I was a solid player yes, but I wasn't a Major League Baseball player.
As I grew older, I noticed that telling stories to groups of people felt natural and fun. I wanted to do that, and I initially just wanted to cover sports. Soon I was covering news, sports, and just about any type of activity that you can imagine. Here I am 19 years later and I'm still doing it.
I don't think there's a better team in the business than ABC7 News. What I love most about being part of this Disney team is that everyone is striving to do their best. Not just the on-air folks, but the behind-the-scenes crews, too. There's a passion to make sure the best possible product is shown and those I work with go above and beyond. It's been hectic at times: extreme weather, bad fires, and tragic mass shootings like the one we saw in Half Moon Bay, but it's those behind-the-scenes crews that make sure everything goes smoothly.
Before joining ABC7, I spent nine years as a weekend news and sports anchor at KRON4 News. While there, I won an Emmy for my news anchoring. But what I enjoyed most was really getting to know the community. It was during this time that I met my Godson Jordan, who has changed my life and continues to change my life to this day. He's the little guy in many of my pictures on Facebook and Instagram.
While at KRON I anchored our breaking news coverage of the Ghost Ship warehouse fire, the mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival, and the Asiana Airlines crash at SFO. Every Sunday night I anchored an hour-long sports program called Sports Night Live. We'd show highlights and then we'd go back and forth with opinions. I still remember losing a friendly bet to a viewer and having to wear a Notre Dame jersey on air. Not fun for a Michigan fan whose family bleeds maize and blue, but a bet is a bet.
Before coming to the Bay Area, I was a journalist in Florida, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. I could go on for another six paragraphs about those amazing opportunities but let me sum it up in a few thoughts. Florida was where I covered the Casey Anthony case and I've never seen anything crazier. Oklahoma had the most extreme weather I've ever seen. It's where I covered tornadoes, flooding, heat waves, and ice storms. Arkansas is where I saw how amazing people can be. I covered many big stories in my two years there, but I'll remember the hospitality of The Natural State first and foremost.
If you have any questions, concerns, or you just want to call me out on a sports prediction, you can contact me via email at jr.stone@abc.com or on my social media pages on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.
J.R.'s Stories
Arson suspect arrested for allegedly starting Park Fire near Chico by pushing flaming car into gully
A man has been arrested for allegedly starting the fast-moving wildfire near Chico that has forced evacuations after officials say he is believed to have pushed a burning car down a 60-foot embankment.
Investigation underway after pill press, illegal drugs seized from North Bay home, police say
Narcotics investigators are looking into an unusual discovery that they say may be tied to large quantities of illegal drugs.
EXCLUSIVE: 13-year-old basketball player stomps on opponent's head during Bay Area game
"You could clearly see the size of his shoe on his face. My son suffered a concussion for the first time he played basketball," said Eva Guingab.
What Elon Musk's Texas relocation plan for SpaceX, X HQs could mean for CA
Expert says moving a main office out of state would likely mean anywhere from dozens of lost jobs to a couple hundred, not thousands of jobs lost. "This is just Elon being Elon," says Thornberg.
VIDEO: Family of 5 coyotes, including 3 pups, spotted playing on SF baseball field
As ABC7 News crews were at San Francisco's Saint Mary's Recreation Center Field Monday putting together a story about coyote warnings after recent incidents - they got quite the surprise.
Australian CEO recovering after being found injured, unconscious on SF street
Upon investigation and review of surveillance video, San Francisco police say Colin Bettles, the Australian CEO who was found injured and unconscious on the street, was not assaulted or a victim of a crime.
BART report highlights need for additional funding and why ridership has dropped
BART services may begin to dwindle over the next few years as a new report confirms the system's slow recovery since the pandemic. Here's the latest effort to boost ridership, before it's too late.
Oakland nonprofit co-founder calls for street closures to curb crime after storefront burglarized
Nearly $5,000 worth of items are gone from Micro Market Spaces, an Oakland nonprofit business incubator, after the office was broken into on Sunday. Now, the co-founder is calling for street closures and blocking of escape routes where these crimes are being committed.
28,000 under evacuation orders, 7 firefighters injured as Butte Co.'s Thompson Fire grows in size
More than 1,000 firefighters are currently fighting the flames at the Thompson Fire in Butte County. More than 3,500 acres have burned and at least seven firefighters have been injured.
2 SFPD motorcycle officers injured after head-on crash with Uber driver
Video shows two San Francisco police motorcycles down on the ground as emergency crews worked to help the two officers riding them.