Olena Heu didn’t realize as she wrote her 157-page master’s thesis that it would become part of the backbone of a new business.
Heu, who started working at KHON-TV seven years ago as Olena Rubin, her maiden name, will work her last shift as an anchor on "Wake Up 2day" on June 27.
Heu is going to form her own communications company, specializing in social media consulting for "small businesses, mom-and-pop shops, that don’t know anything about Facebook" or other social media platforms, she said.
She’s still mulling over the correct branding for her company name, but unknowingly laid the foundation for it with her schoolwork.
As part of her master’s degree in communications, she wrote her thesis about the impact of social media on television journalism.
She already had studied social media for several years, "the ins, the outs, how you would collect and disseminate information and useful content, and how it benefits the general public and the media in general," she said.
She also created the social media pages for "Wake Up 2day," but "I didn’t know it was going to be laying the groundwork for something else," she said.
At the same time, she has many friends who are small-business owners who could benefit "so much" from having a page on Facebook, as could so many other small-business owners who don’t have time to manage their own social media presence.
In addition to her KHON job, Heu also offers media training for those who might find themselves being interviewed by a reporter, serves as an emcee for events, volunteers for nonprofits and does event planning for friends.
Stepping away from the TV station and her early morning schedule at the end of next month will allow her to be her own boss and give her more time with her husband, who works in the construction industry and has an overnight shift.
The recent long weekend gave her time to reflect on what she wanted to do for the rest of her life, and "I just had an epiphany," she said.
When she was hired at KHON years ago, her goal was to become a respected journalist. She has since won an Edward R. Murrow Award and "a couple" of awards from the Society of Professional Journalists. She was offered the morning anchor slot five years ago, and now she feels "it’s time for me to move on and go out with a bang. It’s been a really happy seven years," she said.
She gave the station a month’s notice instead of two weeks because TV news is a specialized industry and she wanted to help out by giving the station a long lead time.
"I did offer to help with other things as well," she said, noting the upcoming elections.
KHON President and General Manager Kristina Lockwood said Heu has been "a great contributor to our morning news" and expressed disappointment that Heu is leaving, "but I wish her the best," she said.
Separately, KHON has hired Texas native Brent Remadna as a videojournalist.
The more casual industry term for the position for many years has been "one-man band," for a journalist who does all the reporting, videography and production of stories, rather than going out into the field with a cameraperson.
Remadna started out in college as a premed major but got hooked on broadcast news as sports anchor during his sophomore year at Ole Miss.
"From breaking news to stories that just make the audience feel good, I love getting out and getting answers, as well as meeting new people along the way," he said in a statement.
Remadna’s hiring and the existing opening for a similar position "has nothing to do" with Heu’s impending departure, Lockwood said.
The station "has a few people in the pipeline that we’re talking with," and will be deciding on Heu’s successor in the coming weeks, but also will accept applications. "We’re always looking for talented people to join our team," Lockwood said.
Reach Erika Engle at 529-4303, erika@staradvertiser.com or on Twitter as @erikaengle.
