Something new after 30 years in the news

Monday, Oct. 10, 2005 | 9:06 a.m.

It was Dave Berns' first official day as host and producer of KNPR's "State of Nevada." Gwen Castaldi, whom Berns is replacing, was yawning.

She had been up late. Packing. Getting ready to reel in her life in Las Vegas, a city she's called home for 31 years.

"This was a very difficult decision for me to make," said Castaldi, whose final day at KNPR is Friday. "My husband is retired. He wanted that slow lifestyle and, secretly, I did too.

"I kind of envision me as I'm getting into my 50s as that Western woman with that long silver braided hair and cowboy hat on the ranch."

The framed photographs of wild horses on her office wall hint at that lifestyle.

Castaldi's collection of journalism awards on another wall reflect her career as a broadcast journalist in Las Vegas, one that began in 1974 when she took a radio job after moving from Cleveland.

This was before television anchors had producers and reporters had the Internet. Castaldi chased her own stories, researched and reported them. She knew everyone in town. They knew her. In her spare time she worked on her first love: writing prose and poetry on the characters she'd pass on her way to the courthouse and the town she once deemed "a strange little place in the desert."

Slowing down has been a longtime plan for Castaldi, who had previously left broadcasting before because she was tired of the daily deadlines.

In 1997 she left her longtime anchor position at KVBC Channel 3 to help launch KVVU Channel 5 as news director. Two years later she retired from television. After that she worked as Clark County's director of public relations.

But the 53-year-old Castaldi says this time she is leaving for good. She and her husband have bought a house in Herriman, Utah, a small town 20 miles southwest of Salt Lake City.

"The day-to-day deadlines," Castaldi said. "I need to slow down. I need to find something less intense than deadlines. I have lived 31 years of three-to-five deadlines a day. It's made me a deadline person, even at home. It's time for another chapter, a change."

Besides, Castaldi said, "I really like rural areas, and we're losing our rural areas. The big deal for me would be on a Sunday morning, hearing a horse clippity clop by on the road."

Castaldi's departure is no surprise to Lamar Marchese, president and general manager of Nevada Public Radio. He knew Castaldi would soon leave when he brought her on initially as a consultant. Having her at the beginning, however, was critical to the show's success.

"It gave us instant credibility," Marchese said. "She's very real, very genuine. She's likeable. I think that comes through on the air, even when she asks the tough questions.

"She set a high standard and was able to get good guests because everyone knows her. She's got such a unique history here. She has local knowledge, knows everyone and their grandmother and is an experienced broadcaster."

It's because of this, her colleagues say, that Castaldi's departure will leave a noticable hole in local news.

"To me it's a significant loss, to have this kind of quality journalist that knows this town, leave," said Bob Stoldal, vice president of news operations at KLAS Channel 8. "She covered the history of this town from the transition of organized crime to the arrival of Howard Hughes to a population topping 1 million. She's covered all that.

"It helped her get the story. People would talk to her."

Myram Borders, a Las Vegas High School graduate who has worked as a journalist in Southern Nevada for five decades, said Castaldi's attention to detail and objectivity placed her above the rest.

"She was an absolute perfectionist," Borders said. "She wanted to get it right and she did. She matured into one of the best journalists we've had in Southern Nevada."

For now, Castaldi is unemployed. If she takes with her the charisma she brought to Las Vegas, she'll likely have no problem landing a job.

Stoldal hired her for a radio news job when her professional background consisted only of a gig as a photographer and reporter for a weekly paper in Cleveland.

"She was intense," Stoldal said, recalling the interview and why he hired her. "She was passionate. She was gonna get this job. She was bright."

Besides, he said, "When you meet someone (like Gwen) you just connect. And I've seen her do that in the interviews she'd get, the people who talk to her. It's a matter of trust. Whether it was the district attorney or an organized crime figure, she'd look them in the eye and let them know that they're going to get a fair interview."

Castaldi looks far different than the anchorwoman she once was. Her tan skin and long, highlighted hair gives her a more casual look. Silver rings adorn her fingers.

Despite the reporter deadlines and long days that tired her, Castaldi reflects warmly on her career as a journalist, particularly her work with "State of Nevada."

"I came away from this program every day knowing something new or a dozen new things," Castaldi said. "And I have so enjoyed this time to have extended dialogue with people about Nevada ... It's a place for them to let go, to talk and say, 'Look, I feel passionate about this.'

"Having almost an hour to discuss with people about something important to a community, it's like a journalist's dream. because I was used to two-to-three minutes."

Of her future, Castaldi said, "People say, 'You should write a book,' but everybody's written a book. History books have been written, political books have been written. It would probably be more of a ... philosophical book about how I perceive this state. I know I'm going to write about Nevada while I'm in Utah. It's just a really fascinating place.

Otherwise, she said, "I would love to start an antique shop."

Kristen Peterson is an Accent feature writer. Reach her at 259-2317 or kristen@lasvegassun.com.

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