Ching hired as color analyst for UH football telecasts
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Ching, 40, was a popular sports and news anchor for KITV for 14 years.
With 18 months remaining on his KITV contract, he resigned as anchor in 2008 to pursue a law career. He is an attorney with King, Nakamura & Chun-Hoon, specializing in labor and employment law. He also handles some medical malpractice and personal injury cases.
Ching will continue to announce high school football games for OC 16.
"I have some flexibility with my schedule," Ching said. "I can control out of it if I have advance notice."
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In what amounts to an eight-game reunion, Shawn Ching has reached an agreement to serve as color analyst for University of Hawaii football telecasts this season.
"I look at it as an opportunity to work with Jim again," Ching said of play-by-play announcer Jim Leahey. "I started with Jim back in 1993 and 1994."
For two seasons, they were telecast partners when the UH football games aired on KHNL. This year, eight UH football games — six at Aloha Stadium, two on the road — will be shown live on Oceanic Cable’s pay-per-view channel and replayed on KFVE, KHNL’s sister station.
Russell Yamanoha, who was the football analyst the past three seasons, will become the on-field reporter.
Ching, a Roosevelt High graduate, was a center for the Warriors from 1987 through 1991. After that, he worked as the manager for what was then known as Rainbow Stadium (now Murakami Stadium).
He was the football analyst for radio broadcasts of UH football games in 1992 before working with KHNL in 1993.
In 1995, he was asked to audition for the sports anchor’s job at KITV. At the time, Robert Kekaula was moving to KHNL, and Rob Fukuzaki had accepted a job in Los Angeles.
After passing the audition, it was an easy decision to accept the job offer. He had a shoulder injury from his football days and no medical insurance. His stadium job was listed as a casual-hire position that did not include benefits.
While still anchoring the evening news, Ching enrolled in law school in 2000. He earned a law degree in 2003, passed the bar, and began practicing law.
"It’ll be nice to talk football with Jim," Ching said. "I think the real neat part about it is having the opportunity to go back to where I started from."
