For over 25 years, Maleko McDonnell has been building a local audience through community service and professionalism, most recently as a morning news anchor for “Good Morning Hawaii” on KITV4-ABC (Lilly, Allen Media Group). He focused on the community service beat and was recognized for his news feature, “Moving Forward,” which highlighted the innovative ways small business owners and entrepreneurs kept their businesses alive under the difficult economic pressure of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In March 2020, Maleko co-produced the “Living Room Live — #AlohaTogether” COVID-19 telethon concert fundraiser. Local and international recording artists, celebrities, and public figures joined the broadcast to deliver messages of hope and inspiring performances. The series raised more than $100,000 in donations to purchase Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers and first responders in Hawaii.
Maleko’s irregular radio personality was the host of “Maleko’s Room” on Star 101.9-FM radio for nearly two decades. The program was consistently rated among the top afternoon drive programs in Honolulu. Serval cornerstone moments in his career were during several critical statewide emergencies. In 2006, he was the first to air with live coverage during an early morning earthquake and the consequent daylong island-wide power outage. Similarly, when Oahu’s power grid failed again in 2008, Maleko was on air again, broadcasting updates throughout the crisis.