This demo reel includes a montage of consumer reports produced for CBS and KPIX by Julie Watts. The montage is followed by a selection of stories in their entirety.
Julie reports on pocketbook issues, resolves viewer problems and examines technology threats and trends. Her reports also expose scams, privacy concerns, unscrupulous business practices and loopholes in consumer legislation.
Julie’s reports air weeknights at 5pm & 6pm on KPIX in San Francisco. Her stories also air weekly on KCBS/KCAL in Los Angeles.
Nationally, Julie is a Consumer Correspondent for CBS Newspath, the network’s affiliate service. Her locally-produced reports are regularly distributed nationally to hundreds of affiliate television stations. They are also periodically featured on CBS network news broadcasts.
Julie also produces several in-depth investigations each year. Those reports have prompted recalls, federal investigations and new legislation. They have also earned Julie several prestigious awards, including a National Press Club Award and the Emmy® and AP awards for Best Reporter.
Additional ConsumerWatch Responsibilities
● Manage day-to-day operations of the consumer unit, including media management and production schedules.
● Train team members on new technologies, including editing software, server systems and computer assisted reporting resources.
● Produce and edit multiple television segments daily, meeting tight deadlines while managing several on-going projects and in-depth investigations.
● Regularly interact with media relations specialists, consumers and corporate/government contacts to pitch stories, secure interviews and diplomatically facilitate resolutions to viewer problems.
Featured Consumer Reports
Investigating Child Credit Freezes
After years of reporting on child ID theft and credit freezes, Julie set out to freeze her toddler’s credit. What she discovered led to a year-long series of editorial blogs that ultimately prompted a new state law and this series of KPIX consumer reports. [Continue/View Demo]
Investigating Car Seats Chemicals
It began as a NewsMom.com editorial and expanded into a KPIX-CBS investigation exposing false advertising, legal loopholes and outdated federal regulations that systematically expose millions of children to concerning car seat chemicals. [Continue/View Demo]
California UN-Confidential
“Reporting this isn’t going to change anything.” That was the response we got from one of the largest state agencies in California when we first questioned why it was violating state privacy laws and putting millions at risk for identity theft.
When we first asked the agency’s PIO what it would take to remove the SSNs from its mailings, she laughed out loud and said “that’s not going to happen.” Three months (and several news reports) later, it did. [Continue/View Demo]
“TSA Cares” Making Changes Following ConsumerWatch Story
While you may be obligated to let TSA inspect your bags, TSA says it is not obligated to put your things back the way they found it.
After a viewer complained that their expensive instrument was repeatedly damaged when TSA failed to re-pack it properly, we started asking questions. We found TSA was not abiding by the instructions posted on its own website and convinced the agency to alter it’s official policy. [Continue/View Demo]
Is Xfinity Public Wi-Fi Hijacking Your Phone?
Most web surfers know that public Wi-Fi is much more vulnerable to hackers than your average private home network, but we discovered that Xfinity public Wi-Fi may automatically connect you to its unsecured public network without your knowledge, even at home.
We put the public Wi-Fi network to the test and demonstrated how easy it is to hack. We also revealed that once you log onto Xfinity public Wi-Fi, your device remains connected to the Xfinity network – even after a factory reset. [Continue/View Demo]
Highway Terror – Ford Catastrophic Cars
When we discovered that one of the nation’s largest automakers was refusing to buy back cars with potentially dangerous safety defects, we started asking questions.
The objective of this story was to educate drivers about their rights when dealers can’t diagnose or repair a problem. Ultimately, Ford agreed to buy back the car featured in our report. [Continue/View Demo]
ID Theft – Continuing Coverage
It’s not a matter of if, but when your identity will be compromised.
From interviewing convicted ID thieves who reveal tricks of the trade, to developing an unprecedented method of protecting your child from ID Theft, this composite includes four unique ID theft stories. [Continue/View Demo]
When Coverage Counts
Sandbags weren’t enough to save this seaside town from flooding. Businesses were shuttered, insurance claims were filed, and then the unexpected happened. ConsumerWatch uncovers why some policyholders were paid while others were not.
The research gathered for this series prompted The Harford (Part 1) to reverse all of its Capitola claim denials, and became the primary evidence in a class action lawsuit against Allied/Nationwide (Part 2). In addition, FEMA (Part 3) launched its own investigation into the pay-out practices of its contracted insurers. [Continue/View Demo]