Vanessa Welch and Mark Ockerbloom

Emcees

Vanessa Welch
Vanessa Welch is an Emmy-Award winning anchor for Boston 25 News. She was recently named 2017 Best Anchor for the Boston/New England chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. She joined WFXT in 2015 and couldn’t be more excited to co-anchor Boston 25 News every night at 5:00, 6:00, 10:00 and 11:00 with Mark Ockerbloom.

Every weeknight, Vanessa is at the helm of breaking and developing stories. She’s traveled with Massachusetts state legislators to Colorado as they studied the impact of legalizing marijuana, reported live from Orlando following the 2016 Pulse Night Club Shooting and has reported at length on the state’s opioid crisis.

Vanessa comes to Boston 25 after nearly nine years as an anchor and reporter at Cox Media Group’s WFTV in Orlando, FL. Vanessa’s success in both anchoring newscasts and effecting change through impactful storytelling speaks for itself. She has been a watchdog for taxpayers, and a strong champion for viewers in need of help. She has also covered national stories of interest including the Casey Anthony and George Zimmerman trials.

Prior to WFTV, Vanessa was a reporter and fill-in anchor at WTVD in Raleigh, NC. She began her on-air career as a reporter at KOSA in West Texas and later anchored the morning newscast.

Vanessa has a heart for service, and putting down roots in the Boston area has meant jumping right in to do some good in the community.  She is actively involved with Boston Partners In Education, The American Red Cross, Make-A-Wish, The Salvation Army and IGer’s Boston.

Mark Ockerbloom
Mark Ockerbloom is an Emmy-Award winning anchor for Boston 25 News. He co-anchors Boston 25 News at 5:00, 6:00, 10:00 and 11:00. He’s been with WFXT since 2004 and is one of the Boston area’s most respected journalists. 

Mark is a native of Winchester, Massachusetts. Growing up in a newspaper family, Mark has always been intrigued by current events. He knows firsthand the type of trust viewers place in their newscasters, and the passion with which they follow local news. From sports to politics, his depth of knowledge about the Boston area adds keen insight to many of the stories he covers.

Major stories Mark has covered over the years include the Pope’s visit to America, the Patriots 5^th Super Bowl victory, Whitey Bulger’s capture and the Boston Marathon Bombings.

Before coming to WFXT, Mark anchored an evening sportscast and co-hosted a nightly sports show at NECN.   Prior to returning home to New England, Mark worked at KOCO-TV in Oklahoma City where he was named Oklahoma’s Sportscaster of the Year.  Mark got his start as a TV sportscaster at WMUR-TV in Manchester, New Hampshire.   He has received broadcasting awards from the Associated Press and The Society of Professional Journalists. In 2010, Mark received a Boston/New England Emmy for Best News Anchor.

Mark is a BC High and Providence College graduate and is an active supporter of JDRF, Special Olympics Massachusetts and Medfield Public Schools. He is also involved with the Pan Mass Challenge in honor of his older brother Carl, who lost his battle with cancer in 2004.