Colby Johnson
Reporter
Harrisonburg, VA
:no_upscale()/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/gray/e65d101f-28df-4442-86e5-c3063693c67c.png)
Colby Johnson joined the WHSV news team in May of 2021. He is a multimedia journalist covering Rockingham County and the towns within it, he is also the weekend reporter.
Colby was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but grew up outside of Roanoke, Virginia in Botetourt County. He graduated from Lord Botetourt High School in 2017 and attended James Madison University in Harrisonburg.
While at JMU he worked as a news reporter on the radio for WSVA news, where you may have heard him delivering area news and traffic reports. Colby got his start in video journalism with Breeze TV on JMU's campus, where he served as a reporter, anchor, and producer over the course of three years.
In his spare time Colby is a enjoys watching sports, and exploring the valley, especially its many beautiful hiking trails. He is always looking to learn more about the community and connect with people in the valley.
Have a story idea? Send it Colby's way!
Updated: May. 12, 2023 at 6:51 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
A new Virginia grant program that helps families provide tutoring for students is now open. Governor Glenn Youngkin’s K-12 learning acceleration grants program will offer $1,500 grants to families of all school-aged children in the state.
Updated: Apr. 6, 2023 at 11:21 AM EDT
|By WHSV Newsroom and Colby Johnson
Augusta County Republican State Senator Emmett Hanger has announced that he will not be running for reelection.
Updated: Mar. 17, 2023 at 5:30 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
The USDA has released its Farms and Land in Farms 2022 Summary report which tracks the number of farms and amount of farm land across the U.S. Nationwide 9,350 farms were lost and farmland decreased by two million acres over the last year however in Virginia things held steady with the number of farms remaining around 41,500.
Updated: Feb. 20, 2023 at 3:10 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation is working toward creating a battlefield park in Toms Brook. The Foundation is preparing to close on an easement with Shenandoah County that would preserve an additional 123 acres of the battlefield there.
Updated: Feb. 16, 2023 at 6:10 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
On Wednesday Virginia U.S. Senator Tim Kaine joined 13 of his Democratic colleagues in the Senate to introduce a resolution condemning the Fair Tax Act of 2023 plan from House Republicans. The bill would impose a national sales tax of 23% on nearly all goods and services.
Updated: Feb. 2, 2023 at 5:49 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
Campanelli coached the Dukes from 1972 to 1985 and helped grow the program from a non-scholarship Division II team to a Division I team. He took several of his teams to NCAA Tournament and was inducted into the JMU Athletics Hall of Fame in 1999.
Updated: Jan. 11, 2023 at 6:41 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
Congressmen Ben Cline, a Republican who represents Virginia’s Sixth District containing the Shenandoah Valley, has been appointed to a leadership role on the Republican Study Committee. Cline will chair the committee’s Budget and Spending Task Force.
Updated: Apr. 13, 2022 at 6:42 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
Congressman Ben Cline met with a number of Valley farmers to hear their needs and concerns and take those back to Washington.
Updated: Feb. 18, 2022 at 8:13 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
On Feb. 6, 73-year-old Ray Eugene Good died after sustaining injuries from a fire in his home on the 400 block of East Gay Street. Now his neighbors are coming together to help his daughter.
Updated: Feb. 7, 2022 at 12:16 AM EST
|By Colby Johnson
On Sunday evening Bridgewater community members came together to pray, sing, and mourn alongside one another as they honored the lives of fallen Bridgewater College officers John Painter and J.J. Jefferson. The vigil provided some comfort to a community grieving the loss of the two heroes.
Updated: Dec. 24, 2021 at 9:43 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
Community members in Augusta County held a candlelight vigil on Christmas Eve in honor of three-year-old Khaleesi Cuthriell.
Updated: Dec. 12, 2021 at 7:42 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
Earlier this week. a proposed congressional and state legislative map of Virginia was released. The map was created by two special redistricting experts, one Democrat and one Republican per an order from the State Supreme Court.
Updated: Dec. 5, 2021 at 7:30 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
Community members in Waynesboro came together on Sunday to hold a celebration of life for Khaleesi Cuthriell on what would have been her fourth birthday.
Updated: Nov. 20, 2021 at 8:02 PM EST
|By Colby Johnson
It’s been over eight months since hiker Cassie Sheetz went missing at Spruce Knob in Pendleton County, West Virginia, and her family is still looking for answers.
Updated: Sep. 19, 2021 at 8:06 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
Staunton veteran Helyn Stowe is being recognized by the VFW’s national #StillServing campaign, which highlights veterans who continue to serve their country and community after their military careers are over.
Updated: Sep. 6, 2021 at 5:49 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
Longtime NBC “Today” Show weatherman Willard Scott passed away on Saturday surrounded by family at his home in the Valley, just outside of Raphine.
Updated: Aug. 21, 2021 at 8:03 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
Staunton native, Melissa Patrick is the VFW District 11 Commander. She served in the Army for 28 years, including serving as NATO’s Chief of Intelligence in Afghanistan in 2005.
Updated: Aug. 8, 2021 at 7:42 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
This weekend the Shenandoah Valley Black Heritage Project kicked off their Roots Run Deep Tour, a self guided walking tour that highlights African American history in Harrisonburg.
Updated: Aug. 8, 2021 at 7:37 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
This week a new Mountain Dew advertisement aired online staring Timberville musician Spencer Hatcher who went viral on TikTok.
Updated: Jul. 24, 2021 at 7:18 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
On Saturday, the non-profit Heroes on the River kicked off a two-day special skydiving event for over 50 combat veterans and their families from across the east coast.
Updated: Jul. 18, 2021 at 7:48 PM EDT
|By Colby Johnson
The James Madison University softball team was being honored at the Washington Nationals game on Saturday night when a shooting outside the stadium caused the game to be suspended, there were many JMU students and alumni in attendance when it happened.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/QW326KXD4BGBFHVEVZZB35K6X4.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/6OD5LHVAZREHPPGIAIHDP3M3EI.png)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/IMIDNUPO7RKQRG4VOA5KHFC2VE.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/GFHQHTDHPRCRZB3YE5V5WTLVBA.PNG)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/5WQLXOUAZFEHTPTUDP3DMN3BHI.png)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/Q34E26NCSBA4RK4FDOLWY2IDU4.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/S4NUGLOKGFE2VFR4AJJ2X6SSKA.png)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/BRD2IYEDPZA5XIPNIR2KEX2GFI.png)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/LQ7XKI77FJAMFDAZYLE5VZBYYQ.png)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/3HJOVBG2IJFLFGUS4FQA5ULVN4.png)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/U7OMO6GOVVGEBKVRVX3IALKNQU.png)