Dustin Nolan, a news anchor at KWQC TV6 in Iowa, announced live on air over the weekend that he is leaving the news business. KWQC is affiliated with NBC. Nolan, who won a 2025 Mid-America Emmy, used his final moments on air to criticize what he sees as a trend in local television news toward softened coverage and avoiding difficult topics.
“I chose to step away from the news industry,” Nolan said visibly emotional, thanking viewers for trusting him over the years and describing the job as a meaningful calling. He did not explain the exact reason for his departure, but focused instead on calling for greater journalistic transparency and for facts to matter more than trends.
Nolan argued that local stations often steer clear of complex issues because they do not want to make viewers uncomfortable. “I believe we need to be more about facts,” he said, adding, “The facts matter, and that is why we do what we do. Our job is to get people out of their comfort zones and make them think about the world we live in.”
He joined KWQC in 2022. In 2025, he and his wife, Jenna Jackson, who works with him at the station, won a Mid-America Emmy for Best Morning Newscast in a medium and small market. Nolan ended by thanking Jackson for their shared work. KWQC had not issued an official response to Fox News as of the report.
