KarenSims
- Journalist
A newspaper journalist by training, Karen Sims began her TV career on South Pacific Television’s News at Ten. In the early 80s she moved into presenting, with current affairs shows Eyewitness and Foreign Correspondent. She co-presented the nightly Eyewitness News alongside David Beatson, but continued to work as a journalist — and expected to be judged on her field stories and studio interviews, rather than as a celebrity.
Screenography
Biography
Journalist Karen Sims was a calm and collected presence on New Zealand screens in the 80s, as a news and current affairs presenter and interviewer.
As a child, Sims dreamt of becoming a veterinary surgeon, but school began to lose its attraction in the sixth form. Her father encouraged her to look at journalism as a career. In 1970 she was accepted by The Auckland Star as a cadet reporter. Sims did three years at the paper, covering a variety of rounds — including police and sports — and wrote features for the daily television page. During regular visits to the NZBC studios, it was suggested that she apply for a broadcasting job. She started in radio, before moving over to the television newsroom.
Awards
1988 Listener Film and Television Awards
Best Presenter: for Foreign Correspondent
“[Karen] Sims has the sort of style that always signified authority, objectivity, integrity in the world of television news and current affairs.”