ONE2017finaledits 08-03-17

“As political director, my goal
is to cover politics without bias
and to tell both sides of the
story,” he said. “In this time of
fake news and partisan news,
we’re just trying to be real
news.”
Chaggaris participates in a
weekly podcast, “The Takeout,”
with CBS News’ Chief White
House Correspondent Major
Garrett. Discussing politics,
policy and pop culture, the two
chat with guests and analyze
the week’s political news over
lunch at D.C. restaurants.
“I’ve learned so much
working with the likes of
Major Garrett, Bob Schieffer,
John Dickerson and so many
more,” said Chaggaris. “It’s
incredible that these people are
my peers now. I’ll never take
those things for granted.”
Chaggaris also had an
interesting role in prepping
CBS News’ Elaine Quijano for
the vice presidential debate last
year, which she moderated.
“For three weeks we were
sequestered, putting questions
together,” he said. “To have
such a key role in that was
pretty cool. It’s a memory I’ll
never forget.”
Chaggaris says his interest
in broadcast journalism and
politics developed at an early
age.
“I watched a lot of TV and
news as a kid,” said Chaggaris,
who attended Shoemaker
Elementary School in Lynn.
He split his middle school
years between Pickering
Middle School in Lynn and
Lynnfield Middle School.
After graduating from St.
John’s Prep in 1990, he went
to Ithaca College, earning a
television-radio degree. He
was particularly inspired by
one of his professors, Alan
Schroeder, a former journalist,
television producer and
diplomat and author of several
books, including “Presidential
Debates: Risky Business on the
Campaign Trail” and
“Celebrity-in-Chief: How
Show Business Took Over
the White House” (ironically
published in 2004).
Chaggaris got his foot in
the door at WMUR-TV in
Manchester, N.H., where
he worked as a production
assistant for nearly a year before
he made the move to D.C.
“I had some friends in D.C.
so I saved enough for a few
months’ rent and went down
there,” he said. “I had made
some thin connections with
people there so I started
out with some odd jobs —
camera work, research for
documentaries.”
In the summer of 1995,
Chaggaris got his break and
was hired by C-SPAN for
a temporary position in the
promotions department. That
led to a four-year career with
C-SPAN on the programming
side. Among the many standout
moments of his career, the first
would be the 1996 Republican
National Convention in San
Diego. “It was my first political
convention and as a 23-year-old
kid, it was amazing,” he said.
He began his CBS News
career in 1999 as an associate
producer in the political unit.
He vividly remembers the
coverage of his first major
election in 2000 — recount
and all.
“When it wasn’t called,
they sent us home at 7 a.m.,”
said Chaggaris. “That was
something. It was also pretty
incredible because I was sitting
on set with the anchors, just
feet away from Dan Rather.”
During the 9/11 attacks,
Chaggaris was sent out to cover
the Pentagon, sitting in on a
briefing with former Secretary
of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
“It was heart-wrenching and
it can’t compare to anything
else I’ve done,” said Chaggaris.
“It was the one time I truly felt
the weight of history.”
Other major assignments
have included covering
Congress and working as an
embedded campaign reporter
covering John Kerry’s 2004
presidential run.
“As a kid from Massachusetts,
it was amazing to be in Boston
for the convention and see
Kerry announced as the
Democratic candidate,” said
Chaggaris.
Although he doesn’t return
to the North Shore as often as
he’d like (especially for stops at
Kowloon, Kelly’s and Land ’n
Sea), Chaggaris says he’s still in
touch with childhood friends,
including Brian Field and Taso
Nikolakopoulos, who are both
seeking councilor-at-large seats
in Lynn.
“It’ll be fun to follow them
from afar,” said Chaggaris.
“Seth Moulton is also an
interesting story. We briefly
covered him in 2014, and that
was another election where
voter connection mattered. It
was a reminder to never take
tenure for granted.”
As for Chaggaris, he doesn’t
need anyone reminding him
that he’s right where he wants
to be.
“Somehow, I stumbled into a
job that’s everything I’ve ever
wanted to do,” he said. “I’m so
grateful for that.”
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17 | ONE MAGAZINE | SUMMER 2017