VENTURA : Radio Station Wins 3 Golden Mikes

Ventura County radio station KVEN won three Golden Mike awards at the 42nd annual Radio and Television News Assn. awards presentation, a spokesman said Monday.

The awards marked the second year in a row that the Ventura-based station, 1450 on the AM dial, won honors in three categories, bringing its total number of the coveted awards to 35, KVEN Program Director Rich Gualano said.

“We’ve had a long line of really good news people work here over the years,” Gualano said.

The news association distributed the awards to stations from San Luis Obispo to San Diego at a ceremony Saturday in Los Angeles.

KVEN’s Keith Hayes, host of the station’s “Noon News Hour,” won an award for best news broadcast over 15 minutes. Sports Director Barry Turnbull was honored for his morning sports segment.

Reporter Kevin Olivas won an award for best light feature. He was honored for a report he filed in August when Sheriff’s Deputy John McGraw was surprised and chased by a 350-pound bear as the deputy searched for poachers in a Fillmore avocado grove.