Eric Hanson has been a reporter for NewsChannel 8 since May 2000.

Eric grew up on a farm between Roland and Story City and has lived in Iowa nearly all of his life. It's that Iowa background and the characters who live here that makes up the cornerstone of most of Eric's stories. His writing has been honored with a national Edward R. Murrow award, two Emmy awards and several statewide honors over the years.

After attending Roland-Story High School, Eric graduated from Wartburg College in Waverly with a double major in Electronic Media and Public Relations. Internships took him to Minneapolis and Waterloo before his first reporting job at WEAU-TV in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He also reported for KWWL-TV in Waterloo, while spending one year pulling double-duty as an adjunct professor at his alma mater, Wartburg. In 2000, he joined the KCCI team, where he reports for the evening newscasts.

Stories have taken Eric to every corner of the country and even to England. But his favorite assignments focus on the characters who make Iowa such a great place to live. From a blind bowler who rolled a perfect game to a group of elderly musicians who strum their fiddles in an auto garage, Iowans are the centerpiece of Eric's stories.

Away from work, Eric is on a quest to visit every Major League Baseball stadium in the nation and he's closing in on that goal. In addition to being a lifelong fan of the Chicago Cubs, Eric also enjoys golfing and just about everything related to the fall season. Eric is active at Lutheran Church of Hope in West Des Moines, singing in a gospel quartet there. Eric lives in West Des Moines with his wife Leslie and daughter Olivia.

Email for Eric Hanson