Jacksonville Reporter Retiring

By Kevin Eck 

Mike Lyons is retiring from Jacksonville, Fla. WTLV-WJXX.

“It won’t be easy, but I can [retire] and I am,” Lyons told the Florida Times-Union. “… I am sure there will be times that I will miss it, especially when there is a big exciting story. I have all the energy and can run with the best of them. But I am looking forward to doing some projects around the house, travel and do whatever I want.”

The 59-year-old journalist received his journalism degree at Florida State University in 1976. He interned at WTLV-TV for $75 a week, then was hired by the former NBC affiliate in Jacksonville, WJKS-TV, in 1976. He stayed there for 20 years — as reporter for 11 years, sports producer for two, then seven and a half years as weekend anchor. Part of that time was when WJKS-TV also did the FOX-30 newscast.

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He left WJKS-TV in 1996, then became nighttime assignment editor at WJXT-TV for five years. He joined First Coast News in 2001, working as an assignment editor until one night seven years ago when he had to run out on a story as reporter. Most recently he’s been a multimedia reporter, shooting his own stories.

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