Viewers React to Phoenix Anchor Leaving

KNXV Morning Anchor Justin Pazera signed off from the Scripps station at the end of June.

He did not want a big goodbye and his goal was to keep his exit low-key. “I didn't want anything, no two-week fanfare, one-week fanfare,” he told the Arizona Republic, “I guess I'm not that kind of a person. … I just wanted it as low-key as possible.”

But viewers have been reaching out and letting him know that he’s missed. “That was one thing that I was surprised about, was the reaction from the viewers,” Pazera said. “Like I had so many people reaching out saying that they watched, and that they woke up every morning, you know, and then that's how they started their day.”

As to why he left the station after 10 years, he said, “I just think that it was time.” Yes, people say that all the time. Pazera knows that. “I guess I've always heard that thing before,” he said. “And this was the first time that I'm like, ‘Oh my gosh, I get it.’”

“I will be 44 this year,” he said. “And I just thought I needed to explore other options. I've never really been able to look for a job in quite some time, because I've always been under a contract. And so I just thought, at this point in my life, this would be a good time to just not renew, and to look at other options. What else is out there?"

Maybe if a station is looking for an anchor without the huge ego, they might want to hit him up.