News Anchors Who Act More Like Ron Burgundy Than Ron Burgundy

Image via Complex Original

Anchor: Scott Haney
Market: Hartford, Conn.
Date: 10/9/2013
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Showmanship

As smart phones and Twitter make weather updates and televised newscasts increasingly obsolete, on-air talent will have to resort to Miley Cyrus-like lows to maintain an audience. Enter Scott Haney, who is willing to eat cat vomit off of the floor for your amusement. 

Anchor: Andrew Johnson
Market: Vancouver, British Columbia
Date: 8/22/2013
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Flirtatiousness

Thankfully, anchor Andrew Johnson didn't respond to his spurned advances by calling the weather woman a "dirty pirate hooker." 

Anchor: Ernie Anastos
Market: New York
Date: September 2009
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Professionalism 

Ernie Anastos compliments a weather forecast by telling one of his co-hosts to "keep fucking that chicken." It doesn't make any sense, but—if we've learned anything from Ron Burgundy—a confident cadence and a some cheesy laughter can totally cloak an anchor's gaffe.

Anchor: Lisa Dutton
Market: Saskatchewan, Canada
Date: 2/12/2013
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Fearlessness

Lisa Dutton is either woefully unaware or has a diabolically brilliant understanding of guerrilla marketing. In 2012, Dutton made headlines for her pick-a-dick line and, earlier this year, encored with this ovation-worthy piece of performance theater. It takes a Ron Burgundy-like moxie to spearhead this sort of viral advertising campaign.

Anchor: Simon McCoy
Market: Great Britain
Date: 9/17/2013
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Situational awareness

During a stand-up shot, Simon McCoy mistakenly grabs a ream of printer paper instead of his iPad and, like a total pro, just rolls with it. Things can get chaotic in the world of live television, but even Ron Burgundy is shaking his head at this one.

Anchor: Jonathan Mann
Market: United States
Date: 7/23/13
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Poise

You have to give CNN news host Jonathan Mann credit for the way he bounces back after declaring that man hunted penis-like sex toys into extinction. You can't learn this level of composure in broadcasting school. One's just born with this kind of grace.

Anchor(s): Larry Potash and Robin Baumgarten
Market: Chicago
Date: November 2012
Demonstrate a Ron Burgundy level of: Buffoonery

WGN Morning News anchors Larry Potash and Robin Baumgarten present live images of a supposed plane crash on a Chicago area highway. As the two try to make sense of the artfully framed carnage, word comes that it's just part of a TV set. These guys could learn a thing or two about how to break news from Mr. Burgundy.

Anchor: Justin Kraemer
Market: Wichita, Kan.
Date: 12/14/2013
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Candor

If YouTube existed in the fictional '70s, Ron Burgundy's famous "Go fuck yourself, San Diego" sign-off would've been the decade's "Gangnam Style." Lucky for Burgundy, he read the news at a time when on-air talent could mess up with relative liberty. Justin Kraemer, however, is not so fortunate. "Let's get the fuck out of here," is a strangely profound rallying cry for disgruntled anchors, so there's that.

Anchor: Jim Ryan
Market: New York
Date: July 19, 2001
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Surliness

During a seemingly innocuous story about a broken elevator, two WNYW newsmen square off on-air like suited versions of David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar. Sure, San Diego's KVWN Channel 4 news team is volatile, but not nearly as unstable as the relationship between Jim Ryan and Dick Oliver.

Anchor: AJ Clemente
Market: Bismarck, N.D.
Date: 4/21/2013
Demonstrates a Ron Burgundy level of: Refinement 

It's not easy to make it in broadcast news, particularly when your third line as a professional anchor is, "Okay, fucking shit." While Burgundy's known to drop the occasional expletive-laden tirade, he demonstrates more grace after a bottle of Johnnie Walker than AJ Clemente does in this clip.