WKMG’s Tee Taylor reflects on 50 years
Tee Taylor, WKMG-Channel 6’s first Black photojournalist who has been with the station since 1970, is preparing to retire. Though he’s not keen on the title, Taylor is a legend — so much so that Mayor Jerry Demings declared Feb. 23, 2021, “Tee Taylor Day” in Orange County in honor of Taylor’s 50-year career.
“When I first started, I had no idea that I would be a pioneer in this business,” Taylor said, noting that former WKMG sportscaster Lee Goldberg referred to him as “The Legend Tee Taylor.”
“I said to him, ‘Hey, man, you know, I’m not a legend. Can you cut that out?’ And he said to me … ‘You don’t pick and choose how we label you. It is something that you’ve earned. And even though you might not want it, you’ve earned it.’ … And then I realized what he meant, and I took it with a grain of salt.”
Taylor said the coronavirus pandemic sped up his decision to retire.
“With this virus going on, being 72 and I had a little minor health situation — my immune system can be easily compromised … so the doctor and, of course, my news director, my GM, we all sort of said that it is time and there’s nothing else I can do.”
In retirement, Taylor said he will miss the people the most.
“I [will] miss just interacting with people.
When I go on assignment, the challenges you face of interacting with people, whether it’s positive or negative, has always been good to me,” he said. “Because I understand the power of that camera and I never abused it, I always made it work for me. But I’m going to miss the interaction with my fellow employees … and just going out on an assignment on the streets and people say, “Hey, how you doing, Tee?’ and you take time out for them.”
“The way my life path led me to Channel 6 was … just meant to be. The way my life has gone is like it’s been set for me.” Tee Taylor, WKMG-Channel 6’s first Black photojournalist
Taylor first came to WKMG after serving four years in the Air Force, ending up at the former McCoy Air Force Base in Orlando. One night while watching TV, he saw an advertisement for a job for minority workers. He applied, and six days later he was working in television at WKMG.
He began in production, timing shows, running large cameras, moving sets and more. Two years later, Ben Aycrigg, WKMG’s news director at the time, moved Taylor to the news department.
Working with cameras came naturally, Taylor said.
“The gift that I have, it’s been given to me because when I picked the camera up, it was like I just knew what to do with it,” he said. “But the way my life path led me to Channel 6 was … just meant to be. The way my life has gone is like it’s been set for me.”
To hone his skills, Taylor went to photography school in 1972 at Eastman Kodak in Atlanta, and the rest is history.
Throughout his career, Taylor has been to 12 Super Bowls; visited Japan for the opening of Tokyo Disneyland; gone on four trips to Augusta, Georgia, to cover the Masters Tournament; covered the Apollo mission and space shuttle launches from Cape Canaveral; and traveled with the Orlando Magic during the 1995 season “when they were on top of the world.”
“There have been so many highlights that it’s just like this a dream,” he said.
Some of his most memorable work experiences involve trips to Africa.
“The highlight of my life was … my trip to Dakar, Senegal,” he said, noting Gorée Island was of interest to him as it is home to the House of Slaves. His guide explained that the majority of slaves that came to America and the Caribbean islands went through the House of Slaves, describing the “horrific” conditions.
“After the trip to that island and listening to what our ancestors went through, I just have another different peace of mind,” Taylor said. “It made me appreciate really what I have here in America. … Being African American, we really can’t trace our roots, but that is the closest one can come to tracing their roots, and I felt a kinship — part of me that belonged and that’s where I came from. So, I had that calming effect and that peace of mind.”
As far as his future plans, Taylor is looking forward to enjoying life.
“I’ve done it all. I’ve been all over the world,” he said. “The only thing I want to do now is just live a healthy life and just stay out of the way of this pandemic.”