After 26 years at ABC13 KTRK Houston and four decades in television news, Jeff Ehling is announcing on mikemcguff.com that he will retire on September 18, 2026.
"My wife and I have been planning for this a long time," Ehling told mikemcguff.com. "We set a goal that would allow me to retire after 20 years, but 2020 was at the beginning of the pandemic, and it did not seem like a good idea to leave a job during all that uncertainty. I signed a three-year contract that year, and not long after, I was given the chance to become a streaming news anchor, and I really enjoyed it. So when that contract ended three years later, I felt like staying for another contract. Now we are six years past our goal, and it just feels like the right time to begin a new phase of our lives. I’m glad I stayed on for these last six years because I thoroughly enjoyed streaming news and being the anchor for the 11 AM."
So what will Ehling do with his upcoming "normal person" schedule?
"I love watching football, but unfortunately I have to miss all of the Sunday Night, Monday Night and Thursday Night games due to working the early morning schedule," Ehling said. "I typically go to bed around 7 p.m. Now I can take in all the NFL and College football action without worrying about getting up early. So the thing I am looking forward to the most is getting to set my own schedule, and that includes plenty of football."
Ehling has been a familiar face to Houston viewers since joining KTRK in January 2000 as the station’s morning reporter. Over the years, in addition to reporting, he also became well known for anchoring, consumer coverage, and, later, digital streaming.
When his wife accepted a job in Houston in late 1999, he relocated to Texas, and shortly afterward, Ehling landed his role at KTRK.
"When I moved here, my wife and I were engaged but not married yet. She is from New York, and we always entertained the idea of moving to New York City, but after we bought our house we realized we likely would never be able to afford a similar home in Manhattan," Ehling told me. "Once we had kids, we realized Houston offered the best cost of living for a major U.S. city, and the longer we stayed, the more we realized how much Houston has to offer and what makes it a great place to raise a family. We love it.
"On a personal level, Houston’s Med Center, specifically Women’s Hospital of Texas, played a major role in the lives of our kids. Both my boys were born prematurely, and the doctors and nurses at Women’s are the reason why those boys survived and are now thriving adults. You can’t overstate the importance of having world-class health care professionals in your backyard. I will always be in their debt. Professionally, the city and the station have been fantastic. I started here as a reporter and knew I would eventually want to move to the anchor desk. ABC 13 made that happen, and the reception from the viewers here allowed me to keep working for 26 years."
During his tenure at ABC13, Ehling covered some of the biggest stories of his career, including hurricanes, reporting from Kuwait and Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom, and covering Texas troops stationed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Over the years, ABC NewsOne, the network affiliate news service, recognized Ehling's live-shot skills and used him for nationwide reports.
"Of all the international stories I have covered, the second Gulf War left a lasting impact on me personally," Ehling admitted. "The station set up a rotation for reporters and photographers that would have us leaving Kuwait after two weeks, but the airspace was closed after we arrived, so we were stuck at the center of the attack from Scud missiles for an entire month. Almost every Scud fired from Iraq at Kuwait was aimed at Kuwait City. The Patriot Missile defenses shot down most of those Scuds, but some made it through. One landed in the middle of the night less than a mile from our hotel.
"While we were the only crew in Kuwait City, we had to report on TV here in Houston at 5 am, 6 am, 11 am, 4 pm, 5 pm, 6 pm, and 10 pm. We then had to reset and do it all over again each day. We got about four hours of sleep a day, but not all at once. Air raid sirens warning of missile attacks sounded throughout the day and night. The sirens and not sleeping or eating properly made things extremely difficult, both mentally and physically, as the days went on. One time we were at a military checkpoint when US forces started putting on their chemical warfare gear. They weren’t messing around, and it was clear something either hit nearby or was in the air. We carried similar gear and also rushed to get the protective masks on. Then we interviewed soldiers about what was happening. Other reporters from around the world were nearby, but they did not have any protective gear. One of the reporters from Japan took our picture while we were interviewing military members. That picture made it into newspapers around the world. I’ve got so many stories from that time, but to this day loud sirens kind of make me nervous."
In 2004, Ehling took over the consumer reporting role after Nydia Han left for 6abc Action News WPVI Philadelphia.
His consumer reporting helped ABC13 viewers save money through his financial tips, scam warnings, and holding businesses accountable.
In 2005, Ehling broke the news of truck fires happening while the vehicle was turned off, leading to a nationwide recall.
"When KTRK asked me to become a Consumer Reporter, I did not hesitate because it is the kind of reporting that impacts people’s lives," Ehling said. "We heard about the truck fires from a viewer, and at first I was kind of skeptical, but after digging into it we found so many people in our area who had the same issue. We went to a wrecker yard during our investigation to see if they had trucks that had caught fire, and the manager told me, 'If you want to take a picture of every truck on the lot that caught fire, you are going to be here all day.' That’s when I knew we had a very big story on our hands, and eventually it got national attention and led to a massive recall."
During this time, he also hosted the Emmy-nominated "Jeff on the Job" half-hour specials that continued his consumer investigations after the Eyewitness Newscasts signed off for the night.
Known for his fantastic live reporting and off-the-cuff style, Ehling later found his way to the weekend morning anchor desk.
In 2017, his live reports covering rescue operations in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey were seen across the nation. Ehling later won the President's Volunteer Service Award for his work in response to Hurricane Harvey.
Ehling stepped away from the weekend morning anchor desk alongside Charly Edsitty in January 2024 and transitioned to weekday mornings and streaming coverage on the ABC13 24/7 stream, where he anchors expanded morning programming and returned to consumer-focused reporting. He was then assigned duties as an 11am newscast anchor on television as well.
"Streaming is great! I love it," he said. "My approach is to try to have a little fun where appropriate. For instance, we hit traffic at the top of every break, and let’s face it, showing drive times from Katy isn’t really super exciting as an anchor or for most viewers. So I really lean into the pronunciation, it’s more like DRIIIIIIVE TIIIMES!!!! I know it’s at least a little funny as my colleagues in the newsroom usually get a laugh out of it. Also, being able to stay on a breaking news story is great. One time there was a foam release at the airport, it’s the kind of foam used to suppress fires. This stuff was everywhere. We got Skyeye over it and then Miya Shay on the ground, and while they were talking, I called up a friend who works in disaster preparedness to have him go over the air via Zoom. It was great TV. Streaming really lets us stretch out our abilities, and that’s why I love the format. I would not have had an opportunity to do this had the station not had the foresight to add additional newscasts that do not appear on regular TV. KTRK was among the first stations in the country to add streaming news and one of the first to offer so many hours of streaming news."
When he started his career, TV stations would have thought "streaming" was something happening down by the river.
Ehling's broadcasting career began in 1986 near his hometown of Statenville, Georgia. The Valdosta State University graduate started at ABC affiliate WVGA in Valdosta before moving to NBC affiliate WMGT in Macon. In 1990, he joined CBS affiliate WCTV in Tallahassee, Florida, where he served as bureau chief in Valdosta and was promoted to weekend anchor.
He continued his career in 1996 at WPTV in West Palm Beach, Florida, working as a general assignment reporter. South Florida also became personally significant; it was there he met his wife.
"When I started back in 1986, my first station was using ¾ inch tapes to record interviews, and now it’s all on video cards," Ehling remembered. "We had no computers, no internet, no live trucks, no news apps. I have seen incredible change in the industry, but one thing has stayed the same. The people who are responsible for bringing the news to your TV are still dedicated, talented, and willing to go to places where residents are being told to evacuate. This business has given me a lifetime of incredible experiences. I got to cover multiple World Series games, Little League World Series games, NFL and NBA playoffs, hurricanes that dumped 56 inches of rain on our community, and so much more. The people I’ve met along the way, both in the business and in the community, have been wonderful. I am so thankful I got to spend the last 26 years of my career here in Houston and at KTRK.
"I will be forever grateful to the station, my coworkers, and the viewers who welcomed me into their homes each day."
