Finding the Story in Maine: Norah Hogan ’11

While most of Casco Bay is fast asleep on the weekends, Norah Hogan is wide awake and heading into the newsroom. By the time the sun rises, she has already combed through scripts, written web articles, and is live on air, anchoring three hours of morning news on WMTW-TV, the ABC affiliate for Southern Maine, starting at 5:00 a.m. From Monday through Wednesday, she shifts into her role as an investigative reporter, hitting the streets to interview sources, digging deeper into stories, and shaping features for broadcast. Norah enjoys every part of her job, but it’s crafting stories, from the initial spark of an idea through research, writing, and reporting it on-air, that she finds most rewarding. “It's great to take ownership of a story,“ says Norah. “To have a hand in each step and find creative ways to tell it that resonate with viewers is an exciting challenge.”

 

Norah had always imagined herself on camera, but as an actor, not a reporter or anchor. She studied theater at NYU, graduating in 2018, but months of odd jobs and endless auditions in New York made her rethink her career path. “I was yearning for something that put me in the driver's seat and that felt more fulfilling day to day,” she recalls. Inspired by the writers at the New York Times who broke the #MeToo stories, Norah began to see a new path in journalism. “I've always been a big consumer of news, and I realized journalism could be a great blend of my skills and interests.” Norah returned to NYU to earn a master's in journalism, and when the opportunity arose to move back to New England, close to family for both Norah and her husband, it felt like the perfect next step.

 

Since joining the station in 2022, Norah has developed a deep appreciation for Maine viewers and their unique sensibilities. “There’s a sense of independence here that runs thicker than other places I’ve lived,” she says. “People here really don't like to be defined by any traditional buckets, and I’ve learned to expect the unexpected. Maine people will surprise you with their political views.” As a familiar face on the news, Norah is frequently stopped at the grocery store or the beach by viewers eager to share an opinion or a local tidbit. “Sometimes I end up talking with people, and I learn something new about a particular neighborhood or something that's going on in the community that I didn't know about,” she says. “ So I’m really open to those interactions at all times.”

 

In a news landscape battered by accusations of bias and sensationalism, local news outlets continue to earn the public’s trust. A 2024 Pew Research survey found that 74% of Americans trust their local news to report accurately. Norah is keenly aware of how fragile that trust can be. While many larger outlets might tune out the noise of social media, she sees value in listening to it. “Even though some comments aren’t helpful, people sometimes offer an angle or perspective on a story that I hadn’t considered,” she says. “It’s a real-time check of how viewers are thinking and feeling about the issues that we cover.” Norah finds that viewers also respect the kind of follow-up journalism that happens at the local news level. National reporters flooded Maine to cover the Lewiston mass shooting in October 2023, but once the initial story had been reported, they moved on. “They're not there for the follow-up story a week, a year, or two years into the future,” says Norah. “They don’t look at the ongoing impacts from that tragedy or cover the attempted gun reform. I think it's an honor to be able to stick around for the whole story.”

 

When Norah first moved to Maine, she figured it would be a brief stop, a couple of years before heading to a larger market. But once again, her plans are shifting. Starting in January, Norah will assume the role of WMTW’s Chief Investigative Reporter. She’s found purpose in telling stories that matter to her, especially those exploring how Maine handles crimes that disproportionally affect women, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. Somewhere along the way, Maine also captured her heart. “I love living here, I love reporting on these communities, and I love my co-workers,” she says. “With the beaches, the mountains, and all the access to the outdoors,  I'm just living in the moment and trying to do my best work every day.”