‘225’: Longtime newsman Sells looks back on eminent career

Point the lens at George Sells and he’s home. For the past 50 years, Sells has spent his days finding stories to share. He has hunted sources and angles. He has conjured questions designed to sandblast any remaining layer of privacy or protection. 225 caught up with the him in late May during his last week before retirement, just before André Moreau took over as evening news anchor. Sells patrolled the newsroom at WAFB, took purposeful steps toward his desk, a jacket thrown over one shoulder. When he put on the jacket, with its generous shoulder pads, he grew a few sizes. He added to that with a steel-straight posture. Every movement on TV means something. Pop the eyes to make a story important. If it’s already a mind-boggling report, a horrific series of keening mothers or people slogging through waist-deep floods, maintain a steady gaze. Sells, 69, is always thinking: How will this come across? At the end of the day, he drives to a tree-shaded cul-de-sac at the far reaches of a gated neighborhood, where a lone cicada tweets. His house looks out at a flower-laden golf course, but he’s no club swinger. “I never really enjoyed the game of golf because I couldn’t shear 70 on the first round,” he says. Read the complete profile by Amy Alexander in 225, and watch a video of Sells discussing his career here.