DENVER — Veteran TV news anchor and journalist Gary Shapiro was honored at the Colorado State Capitol on Wednesday.
Shapiro became anchor of 9NEWS Mornings in 1989 after first joining 9NEWS as a Boulder bureau reporter in 1983. He retired from full-time broadcast duties in December after 39 years at 9NEWS.
Shapiro was honored in the Colorado General Assembly in a ceremony Wednesday morning.
Besides his anchoring and reporting duties at 9NEWS, Shapiro produced a number of TV specials and documentaries, including in-depth reports on Colorado's Japanese internment camp Amache, Denver's Five Points neighborhood, and the U.S. Air Force Academy, as well as Normandy, Pearl Harbor and the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Shapiro traveled to Italy and Poland for a documentary on Pope John Paul II before the pontiff’s visit to Denver in 1993.
He has won numerous awards including Emmys and awards from the Colorado Broadcaster's Association. He also won the coveted Edward R. Murrow award for documentary reporting.
Gary Shapiro: Colorado broadcast legend
"I can't even express how great it's been to work at 9NEWS," Shapiro said when he announced his retirement. "Their professionalism, commitment to news and community, diversity, and ethical makeup continues to make it one of the truly elite stations in the country."
"I will always be thankful to the many on-air and behind-the-scenes people I've worked with, all the photojournalists, producers, directors, assignment editors, digital staff members and so many others who have helped and guided me for decades. And again, I couldn't have done any of it without our dedicated viewers. They are our second family. They continue to be the reason we all work so hard for so many hours."