Of all the jobs I've had over the years reporting across the country, my role as part of the Local News 8 anchor team at 5,6 and 11 is perhaps the most important. That's because I'm not just working for a producer to make deadline, or a News Director with a vision,I'm also working for the people of East Tennessee.

My name is Amanda Hara, and it only took a quick drive to get here. I come to you from Nashville, Tennessee where I spent the last three years reporting and filling in as an Anchor at WTVF. While there, I had the opportunity to tell incredible stories alongside some of the most talented photographers in the country, winning Emmy and Associated Press Awards for my work.

I grew up showing horses in the Hunter/Jumper circuit, played Equine Polo for Washington State, and now compete in Three-Day Eventing. So it was only natural that I would also work in Lexington.I covered the Kentucky Derby three years in a row, Anchored from Churchill Downs during the Kentucky Oaks, and reported for "Keeneland Close-Up" profiling Keeneland Race Course. While in Lexington, I also testified in several trials, including the capital murder case of a local Police Chief after the suspect admitted to the crime during a jailhouse interview.

After graduating from the Edward R. Murrow School of Communication at Washington State University, I landed my first gig in the Midwest town of Evansville, Indiana where I once went 24 hours without sleep covering a deadly tornado for my local station as well as CNN and the WeatherChannel. I also hunted for meth labs on horseback with the Knox County, Indiana Sheriff, and produced a series of stories that prompted major changes at a corrupt animal shelter.

But my very first job in news came at the age of 8, when I started a small neighborhood newspaper selling copies for 25 cents a piece. After a year reporting on missing pet hamsters and garbage pick up day, I realized there was much more to journalism and that television news was the path to follow. No other medium combines pictures and words to create such a powerful message.

I'm honored to have the responsibility of bringing the news to the viewers of East Tennessee every night, and I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to work with.

I'm looking forward to hearing from you about the stories you want to see on Local 8 News.