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COURTESY KHON-TV2
The newly configured Wake Up 2day morning team at KHON-TV 2, from left, Olena Heu, Ron Mizutani, Jai Cunningham (front, center), Taizo Braden and Kanoe Gibson.
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Some KHON-TV viewers were startled to hear goodbyes from Kirk Matthews and Trini Kaopuiki during the Friday sign-off of "Wake Up 2day," the weekday morning news show.
The two are moving to different so-called dayparts on KHON as the station recasts the 4:30-to-8 a.m. show.
Jai Cunningham, who remains part of the show, will kick off the news at the top of the morning and will then take up the role of field reporter for the rest of the show.
At 5 a.m. the show will be anchored by Ron Mizutani and Olena Heu, with weather anchoring by Kanoe Gibson, who will join the show from her previous weekend weather assignment.
Taizo Braden also will remain part of the morning-show team.
"We’re not losing anyone. We’re moving a couple people around," said Kristina Lockwood, vice president and general manager. "I think they’re going to be very good together on camera."
Matthews will handle daytime reporting, while Kaopuiki will move to weekend weather anchoring "and will likely do some reporting," Lockwood said.
Mizutani had been working in public relations for about a year and made his second return to TV news last month. He previously left KHON for Hawaiian Telcom in August 2007 but resigned the following January and later returned to KHON.
