Saturday, April 4, 1998 | 4:35 a.m.
Anne Yeager, a 24-year-old Las Vegas 1 reporter, is not worried about facing any slow news days here.
That's because she last worked at KKTU, an NBC affiliate in Cheyenne, Wyo., in a state where cattle outnumber people.
"It was a pretty small market," Yeager said with a laugh, "but we actually had real news. We covered the whole state, and when something happened hundreds of miles away, we would drive all day and cover it."
In Cheyenne, much of Yeager's time was devoted to covering state government when the Legislature was in session, and to coming up with good enterprise stories during slow political times.
"I learned a lot personally and professionally in Cheyenne," Yeager said. "One of the things I learned was how to come up with a really good story."
Yeager did many stories on battles between the National Rifle Association and those in favor of gun control.
"In Wyoming many people are very opposed to gun control," she said, "and when you interview a person who favors the control of guns, it seems like it's that person against the whole state."
A 1995 graduate of Ohio University with a bachelor's degree in journalism, Yeager got her first job at CBS affiliate WNCT in Greenville, N.C., as a producer.
"It was my job to arrange the show, write the stories and edit and arrange tape," Yeager said. "I was stressed all the time, running around here and there. I did it for six months, and I found out pretty quickly it wasn't what I wanted to do."
So, from there she went to Cheyenne.
"It was quite a change. And I will say it wasn't easy getting used to the weather," Yeager said. "It gets really cold in Wyoming. Lots of snow is dumped on you. They say Chicago is the windy city, but it's nothing compared to Cheyenne."
Needless to say, Yeager is looking forward to the Southern Nevada climate.
"The weather is just great, and it's amazing how big the city is," Yeager said. "And where else can you tell people where you work by saying, 'Take a left off Tropicana and a right on Flamingo and then go by the Debbie Reynolds Hotel.'"
About working at Las Vegas 1, Yeager said, "I think it's going to be interesting. I like the idea of having a different kind of format. The 24-hour channel is going to be very interesting and every exciting and will give me a lot of opportunities to go in depth into issues facing Las Vegas residents."
Yeager looks forward to covering growth management issues and related topics such as water and air quality.
"Also, schools are a big issue," Yeager said. "People get really passionate about the school system."
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