When she was a young girl, Ch. 5 anchor Carole Mikita used to look at her image in the kitchen window at night and do commercials with pots and pans. That was back in Steubenville, Ohio. Mikita went to Ohio State University and graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in theater, then stayed on to take classes in writing and reporting.
"I don't think TV news was in my mind then, but I grew up in a household where the news was very important. My father was an orthopedic surgeon and my mother was very involved in the community. They were always speaking their minds about politics and current events. We talked about it all the time."Her first job was at WTOV in Steubenville, followed by a stint in Pittsburgh, where she anchored the news at WPGH, a small independent station.
"Our news format consisted of news breaks throughout the evening and then a 10-minute newscast at 10:50 a.m. It was kind of rip 'n' read."
In June 1979 Mikita came to Salt Lake City to visit her brother, Steve, now an assistant attorney general, who was attending Brigham Young University's law school at the time. Steve said, "You'll love it here."
Although initially skeptical, she accepted Ch. 5's offer to become a general-assignment reporter. "I started doing morning cut-ins in 1981, then less than two years later, I was doing the noon news. Once I met my husband, I knew I wanted to stay."
Mikita has become a KSL fixture, anchoring all the newscasts at one time or another, including several years on the coveted 10 p.m. show. Currently, she does the noon and 6:30 p.m. newscasts and works as religion reporter.
Her husband shares domestic chores. As a BYU history professor, Neil York has a more flexible schedule than his wife's, so he has always willingly taken his share of the child rearing and the household load.
Originally, Mikita had network ambitions, so she tells her daughters, Jennifer, 16, and Caitlin, 15, that they should nourish big dreams. "That didn't happen to me, but that's OK. I love what I do and where I work."
Mikita reaches the Triad Center at 10 or 10:30 a.m. each day and gets home about 7 p.m., in time for dinner with the family. "It's certainly better for our family life since I stopped doing the 10 o'clock news."
Early on, Mikita was arts reporter at KSL. She still loves the theater and has been asked to read with the Utah Symphony and to appear in a Ballet West production, "not in toe shoes but as part of an ensemble."
Mikita has often sat in Abravanel Hall during dress rehearsals with only a photographer and "listened to that magnificent orchestra, moved literally to tears. The same with the ballet."
She maintains that "stage right is still my favorite place of all time when I'm working. I don't have great talents as an actress, dancer or singer myself, but I get to tell people about those who do."
Mikita's more recent role as religion reporter has allowed her to "reinvent" herself, travel and talk to people about faith. "The most enjoyable part is the story telling."
A perfectionist, Mikita constantly feels the need to conduct her own interviews, write her own story and do her best work.
She has high praise for her co-anchors, especially Dick Nourse and Bruce Lindsay, with whom she has worked the longest. Nourse, she says, "could be the 800-pound gorilla and throw his weight around. He doesn't. He treats everyone with grace. Bruce is the ultimate professional. He pushes himself harder than he would ever push anyone else. It's an honor to sit next to him."
Because she's in a business where appearance counts, she admits to some vanity. Although she doesn't like it, she forces herself to work out regularly and to watch what she eats. But she does not consider herself "buff."
The little time Mikita has for herself she likes to spend reading history. "I'm close to finishing the new Alison Weir book, 'Life of Elizabeth I.' It's fascinating. Leaving this century seems to help me put my life in perspective."
She also loves spending time with her husband and daughters. "The really important things go on at home."
Some people tell her her job "looks fun." She says, "That's not what I do for fun, even though I love what I do. There are those joyous moments when it's incredible to be who you are, and then there are days when you make foolish mistakes, even though you have years of experience."
As Mikita approaches her 48th birthday and the celebration of her 20th year at KSL, she is still striking and youthful. She feels she is in the right place at the right time, doing what she is supposed to do.