C.J.: 'CCO's Hutchinson suspended for locker room play

By C.J., Star Tribune

Last update: September 25, 2002 - 11:00 PM

Word around WCCO-TV is that "sports reporter" Anne Hutchinson has been suspended for her antics in the locker room when the Twins clinched the Central Division title.

Video that aired of Hutchinson dousing Denny Hocking was reportedly the least of her unprofessional locker room transgressions.

"That kind of information is a personnel issue, and you know that I don't talk about personnel issues," station spokester Bronwyn Schaefer Pope said today.

Around the station, the buzz is that Hutchinson was informed of her week's suspension Wednesday when she arrived at work. It's most likely that news director Maria Reitan had to inform her prize hire of the punishment.

Reitan was out of the office last week when Hutchinson's locker room antics came to light on video.

BSP explained Hutchinson's behavior like this back then: "Because somebody sprayed something in her eye, when they were spraying one of those bottles, [probably of champagne] they felt bad. She had to go rinse her eyes out. She wears contacts. They felt bad they sprayed her in the eye and said Why don't you dump this on me and then we're even?"

While this wasn't much of an excuse for joining in the celebration that Hutchinson was supposed to be covering, there probably wasn't any excuse for other video from the party.

Insiders claim that Hutchinson was running around the locker room with a cigar in her mouth, dousing other players.

"I don't know anything about that," said BSP. Managers were reportedly aghast at this footage. "No, I didn't see any video like that," said BSP.

As for whether Hutchinson's duties will change when she returns from suspension, BSP said, "It's all a personnel issue."

Errors spoken on-air by the foundering and fledgling sports reporter, who has been here since June, also likely played a role in this discipline.

-- C.J. is at 612-332-TIPS or at cj@startribune.com, where she never opens attachments. So don't even try.