PBS SoCal Leads; KVEA Tops Newscasts

PBS SoCal (KOCE/KCET) led the 2025 L.A. Area Emmy awards with eight total, but the other big winner of the night was Telemundo’s KVEA-TV, which took home all three station awards for best newscasts — for daily morning (4 a.m. to 11 a.m.), daily daytime (11 a.m. to 7 p.m.) and daily evening (7 p.m. to 12 a.m.).

The 2025 Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards were held Saturday at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, hosted by Spectrum News 1 host/anchor Kelvin Washington.

Jim Hill was recognizd with 2025 Los Angeles Area Emmy Governors Award, for his five-decades-long career in broadcasting and 45 years as a sportscaster at KCBS/KCAL in Los Angeles. The award was presented by former LA Laker star James Worthy.

Bob Bain and Bob Bain Productions produced this year’s event, featuring categories including Live and Breaking News Coverage, Crime and Social Issues, Culture and History, the Arts, Health and Science, Human Interest, Music, Sports, and the Environment. 

KVEA and KMEX both landed seven Emmys total on Saturday — a strong dual showing for L.A.’s top two Spanish-language stations. KABC-TV and KTLA-TV followed with three each, while Spectrum News 1 and Spectrum SportsNet LA got two a piece.

Here are the winners for this year’s Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards:

News and Programming

L.A. Local Color

“Fast Food and Car Culture” (“Lost LA”)
• PBS SoCal
Matt Bass, Director, Director of Photography
Angela Boisvert, Producer
Tamara Gould, Executive Producer
Nathan Masters, Executive Producer, Host
Bill Dotson, Co-Producer
Anne-Marie Maxwell, Co-Producer
Rick Pratt, Editor
Kathy Kasaba, Supervising Producer
Micaela Rodgers, Associate Producer

Independent Programming

“Possible Selves: Overcoming the Odds in Foster Care”
• PBS SoCal
Shaun Kadlec, Camera, Director, Producer
Grace Zahrah, Editor, Producer
Jamie Wolf, Executive Producer
Sarah Feeley, Producer
Doug Blush, Producer
Bill Resnick, Executive Producer
Pablo Bryant, Camera

Education/Information

“Women of Fire”
• PBS SoCal
Michelle Merker, Executive Producer
Georg Kallert, Producer
Moses Norton, Producer
Maris Malejs, Co-Producer, Editor
Anna Agadjanyan, Associate Producer
Zoe Lubeck, Camera

Crime/Social Issues

“Cruce de Destinos”
• KMEX-TV

“El Valle de la Soledad”
• KMEX-TV
Arturo Quezada, Camera, Editor, Producer
Dina Rodriguez, Producer
Yarel Ramos, On-Camera Talent, Producer
Marco Flores, Executive Producer, Producer

Arts

“The Cheech” (“Artbound”)
• PBS SoCal
Tamara Gould, Executive Producer
Angela Boisvert, Executive Producer
Nic Cha Kim, Producer
Kathy Kasaba, Supervising Producer
Luis Alfonso De la Parra, Associate Producer
Varda Bar-Kar, Director
Alessandra Pasquino, Producer
Matthew Wilder, Director of Photography
Edgar Sardarian, Editor

Culture/History

“Snapshots of Confinement”
• PBS SoCal
Michelle Merker, Executive Producer
Esteban Gómez, Producer, Writer
Whitney Peterson, Producer, Writer
J.D. Gonzales, Camera, Director

Informational Series (More Than 50% Remote)

“Rebel Kitchens Southern California: Immigrant Chefs”
• PBS SoCal
Tamara Gould, Executive Producer
Angela Boisvert, Executive Producer
Antonio Diaz, Director, Editor, Executive Producer, Director of Photography
Jaime Morgan Muñoz, Producer
Kathy Kasaba, Supervising Producer
Robert McDonnell, Supervising Producer

Informational Series (More Than 50% Studio)

“Al Punto California”
• KMEX-TV

Entertainment

“Actress Roundtable: Cynthia Erivo, Zoe Saldaña, Demi Moore, Kate Winslet & More”
• Los Angeles Times
Denise Callahan, Co-Executive Producer
Patrick Steward, Editor
Ben Church, Producer
Kevin Haulihan, Executive Producer
Annemarie Hauser, Producer
Michael Siegel, Camera
Andrew Gombert, Producer
Christopher Argentieri, Co-Executive Producer
Gina Pollack, Camera
David Todd, Associate Producer
Brian Callahan, Director

News Series

“Orgullo Mexicano”
• KMEX-TV
Sandra Cervantes, Anchor, Writer
Arturo Quezada, Camera, Editor, Producer

Sports Special

“Beyond the Sport: Fernando Valenzuela” (“Beyond the Sport”)
• Spectrum News 1

Sports Series – Programming

“Backstage Dodgers”
• Spectrum SportsNet LA

Live Sports Coverage

No nominations

Sports Feature

“Fernando Valenzuela Tribute” (“Access SportsNet Dodgers”)
• Spectrum SportsNet LA
Chris Witte, Producer
Stuart Mitchell, Writer
John Hartung, On-Camera Talent

Live Special Events – Programming

“Rose Parade Presented by Honda”
• KTLA5
Christie Lyn Lugo Leigh, Executive Producer, Line Producer
Bryan Hileman, Director, Executive Producer
Chris Reilly, Executive Producer
Dara DiGerolamo, Associate Director
Becca Jauregui, Associate Producer
Wayne Manous, Associate Producer
Leeza Gibbons, On-Camera Talent
Mark Steines, On-Camera Talent
Chris Schauble, On-Camera Talent

Live Special Events – News

“Valenzuela Eterno”
• KVEA

Feature Segment

“Fermin La Calaca” (“Acceso Total”)
• KVEA
Amaya Pinto, Executive Producer
Elva Saray, Host, Writer
Mario Marval, Editor
Alejandro Chipana, Camera

Information Segment

“Almas Rescatadas” (“Acceso Total”)
• KVEA
Amaya Pinto Fernández, Executive Producer
Elva Saray, Host, Writer
Mario Marval, Editor
Alejandro Chipana, Camera

Live Coverage of an Unscheduled News Event

“Franklin Fire”
• ABC7

Entertainment News Story

“Death of a Legend: James Earl Jones” (“Eyewitness News at 11pm”)
• ABC7
George Pennacchio, Producer, Reporter
Cheryl Diano, Editor, Producer

Business/Consumer News Story

“Infertilidad: En Busca De Un Milagro” (“Noticias 34 a las 11pm”)
• KMEX-TV
Angie Gonzalez, Producer
Arturo Quezada, Camera, Co-Producer, Editor
Yarel Ramos, Reporter

Crime/Social Issues News Story

“Forensic School” (“Noticias 34 a las 11pm”)
• KMEX-TV
Oswaldo Borraez, Reporter, Writer

Art/Cultural/Historical News Story

“An Oceanfront Injustice: The Story of Silas White” (“NBC4 News at 6pm”)
• NBC4
Jonathan Gonzalez, Editor, Reporter
Enrique Roman, Camera

Environment News Story

“Sea of Change: The Whale Superhighway” (“Eyewitness News at 5pm”)
• ABC7
Leanne Suter, Reporter

Health/Science News Story

“Telemundo 52 Investiga: Epidemia Oculta” (“Noticiero Telemundo 52 a las 6pm”)
• KVEA
Enrique Chiabra, Producer, Reporter, Writer

Human Interest News Story

“A Beautiful Mind” (“Spectrum News 1 at 9:30pm”)
• Spectrum News 1
Renee Eng, Anchor, Camera, Editor, Producer, Reporter, Writer

Investigative News Story

“Metro Safety!” (“Noticias 34 a las 11pm”)
• KMEX-TV
Oswaldo Borraez, Producer, Reporter
Hector Varela Gonzalez, Camera, Editor

Sports News Story

“Paralympian to Compete in Paris” (“KTLA 5 Morning News at 11am”)
• KTLA5
Krystle Rich-Bell, Reporter

Short Promo – Sports

“USC Football: Arrival of the Trojan”
• USC Football
Flint Tanquary, Director, Editor
Juan Reyes, Associate Producer
Radmen Niven, Executive Producer
Luke Cuellar, Graphic Designer
Eric Michael, Camera
Robert Washington, Associate Producer
George Tyler Heffley, Associate Producer
Mic Ferrante, Associate Producer
Ezekiel Wagner, Senior Producer
Ayo Douson, Producer
Cody Worsham, Executive Producer

Short Promo – News/Topical

“Lost LA”
• PBS SoCal
Numa Pelissier, Editor, Producer

Public Service Announcement

“KTLA 5 ‘Own Your Dreams’”
• KTLA5
Robert Matthews, Editor, Producer, Writer
Matthew Mary, Graphic Designer
Estella Medina, Graphic Designer

Music Composition

“Artbound: The Cheech”
• PBS SoCal
Ameya Saraf, Composer

Station Awards

Station awards do not have nominations; rather, all entrants are candidates for the Emmy statuette.

Regularly Scheduled Daily Morning Newscast: 4:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m.

“Noticiero Telemundo 52 a las 6am”
• KVEA

Regularly Scheduled Daily Daytime Newscast: 11:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.

“Noticiero Telemundo 52 a las 6pm”
• KVEA

Regularly Scheduled Daily Evening Newscast: 7:00 p.m.–12:00 a.m.

“Noticiero Telemundo 52 a las 11pm”
• KVEA