14 June 22-28, 2023 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com New Times b e s T o f m i a m i ® 2 0 2 3 where she has amassed more than five million followers thanks to videos of her getting ready for college outings (#GRWM) and spilling the messy details of her personal life (breakup with pro baseball boyfriend Tyler Wade, drunken mishaps, getting stranded in Italy). She might be rubbing shoulders with Miley Cyrus and Victoria’s Secret models now, but followers ap- preciate her no-filter realness about her strug- gle with cystic acne and the decision to have cosmetic work done. She just, like, gets us. B E S T YO U T U B E P E R S O N A L I T Y Miami The Kid @Miamithekidd (YouTube) He’s in his 20s now, but that hasn’t stopped young-at-heart Miami The Kid from amassing more than a million followers on his YouTube channel, where he posts absurd prank videos, man-on-the-street interviews with bikini-clad young women, and other dramatic misfortunes. Like the time he was stopped by police officers outside Aventura Mall while wearing a ski mask, and the time his girlfriend caught him cheating and cut his hair while he slept. These days each video he posts generates 100,000 to 300,000 or more views and thousands of com- ments from fans and haters alike. B E S T I N F L U E N C E R Amanda Booz @amandabooz (Instagram) As a little girl, Amanda Booz would hold an imi- tation microphone to her lips in front of her dolls at her childhood home in Miramar home to host “The Amanda Show.” All these years later, she’s garnered 57,000 sentient followers on Instagram, who tune in for her curated feed of fashion, makeup, and travel inspiration. As a lifestyle influencer and multimedia journalist and producer, Booz has worked with a slew of networks and brands, including BET, Viacom, Complex, Spotify, NBC, and CBS Radio. Her advice? “Be a light and be confident and true to who you are no matter what,” Booz says. “Live out loud and enjoy life.” B E S T T V N E W S A N C H O R Johanna Gomez NBC 6 South Florida (WTVJ-TV Channel 6) nbcmiami.com @johannagomez (Instagram) Whether she’s singing with Jimmy Fallon or enjoying a back-arching dance with Magic Mike, Emmy Award-winning TV reporter Jo- hanna Gomez is bubbly and captivating on- screen as the cohost of the daily lifestyle and entertainment show 6 in the Mix on NBC 6 South Florida. She and cohost Jen Herrera have a natural chemistry and easily riff on each other in what often becomes unscripted knee-slap- ping comedy. But off-screen (and via social me- dia) Gomez reveals a softer side, as the mother of three often shares her personal struggles as a breast-cancer survivor and urges other women to check each month for cysts. B E S T T V S P O R T S A N C H O R Josh Moser WSVN7 News (WSVN-TV Channel 7) wsvn.com @TheMozKnowz (Twitter) As his Twitter handle @TheMozKnowz sug- gests, WSVN sports anchor Josh Moser un- derstands South Florida’s diverse sports scene. From sideline reports after Miami Heat games to one-on-one sitdown interviews with Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, Moser has his Knowz deep in the Miami sports trenches. Arriving in late 2020, Moser is a rel- atively newcomer on the Miami sports-cover- age scene. But his outside-the-box interview questions keep Moser’s subjects and viewers at the edge of their seats and on their toes, pro- viding a jolt of new insight to what often feels like a redundant space. B E S T T V N E W S R E P O R T E R Sheldon Fox WSVN7 News (WSVN-TV Channel 7) wsvn.com @fox_sheldon (Twitter) When it comes to landing scoops about the grimy side of Miami life, count on Sheldon Fox to be the first TV reporter on the scene. A Magic City native, Fox is known for his exclu- sives documenting violent episodes that are commonplace in our tropical dystopia. He was first to report on a roving band of male bicy- clists attacking and robbing unsuspecting pe- destrians in Miami Beach. The story included cellphone footage of the young men ganging up on and beating a victim. Fox was also the first on the scene in Miami’s Silver Bluff neighbor- hood shortly after an unidentified man was spotted indiscriminately shooting a high-pow- ered rifle in the street. And he uncovered the exclusive police bodycam footage showing po- lice officers blowing up a door and windows of a hotel room where a homicide suspect was holed up. Fox is also keen on public-service journalism, like the time he reported how a woman videotaped a tow truck driver rifling through her car after he hitched the vehicle for being illegally parked. The driver was later ar- rested for allegedly stealing cash and iPhone accessories from the woman’s SUV. B E S T M E T E O R O LO G I S T Betty Davis Local 10 (WPLG-TV Channel 10) local10.com @thebettydavis (Instagram) From a once-in-a-thousand-years storm that parks itself over Fort Lauderdale to tracking oncoming hurricanes to practical tips on navi- gating the brutal South Florida heat, we look to Betty Davis. As chief meteorologist for Local 10, she’s our trusted weather source on week- days during the station’s 4, 6, and 11 p.m. shows. She has been in the biz for 15 years, with stints at the Weather Channel and in mar- kets farther up the East Coast. We’re glad she’s here — her impact extends well beyond her forecasts, including regular visits to local class- rooms and universities to inspire the next gen- eration of atmospheric scientists. We can count on Davis’ forecasts to be bright even when the weather isn’t. B E S T M U S I C R A D I O P E R S O N A L I T Y Ashley O 104.3 The Shark (WSFS-FM) 1043theshark.com @ashleyo2go (Instagram) Morning commutes can be a doozy around these parts. One silver lining is DJ-rockstar extraordinaire Ashley O on South Florida’s al- ternative station, 104.3 The Shark. She’s on mornings from 6 to 10 a.m. with her hot takes and funny commentary. Over the years, she has interviewed bands like Twenty One Pilots and the Killers, started a program that pays off outstanding student lunch debt in Bro- ward County, and is the beloved local face of The Shark’s biggest annual concert spectacle, the Audacy Beach Festival (formerly Riptide Music Festival). She’s a blast to follow on so- cial media, too, dishing on everything from fa- vorite hot dog toppings to what it’s like to work in the DJ booth. B E S T R A D I O S TAT I O N Hits 97.3 (WFLC-FM) 866-227-9730 hits973.com A lot of stations claim to play “the hits.” Hits 97.3 actually does. Perhaps it’s in the name, but the station has mastered the right balance of Latin thump, contemporary pop, and nostalgic throwbacks to keep South Florida jammin’ through the day. Its DJ lineup is great, too, with quintessential Miami girl Jade Alexander hyping up our mornings and comedian/ac- tress/DJ Brittany “Duchess of Kendall” Brave making us laugh. Thank you, Hits 97.3 We think you’re a hit, too. B E S T H E R A L D R E P O R T E R Alex Harris @harrisalexc (Twitter) A lot of climate reporting focuses on big-picture data and futuristic projections. But stories bear- ing the byline of the Miami Herald’s Alex Har- ris — the paper’s first climate reporter — often focus on what a changing climate feels like. Harris reports on climate change as a personal, local issue affecting all of us, from coastal condo owners to the working poor. Take her stories on the catastrophic flooding in Fort Lauderdale earlier this year, including one presciently ti- tled: “A freak storm, but also the future?” In be- tween accessible explanations and frightening data points, Harris weaves in stories about an elderly resident floating in her home on a mat- tress and panicked parents hoisting their young children on a sofa to avoid rising floodwaters. One thing Harris’s work makes glaringly clear: Climate change is here, and it’s happening now. B E S T H E R A L D P H OTO G R A P H E R Carl Juste @ipcartspace (Instagram) Miami Herald photographer Carl Juste has been at it for decades. Since 1991, the award- winning photojournalist has been holding his camera up to the injustices, scandals, and beauty that surround South Florida, while bringing empathy and a strong moral compass Arts & Entertainment
