Plagiarism rumors swirling around viral Emmy-winning TV anchor’s boisterous on-air goodbye speech are laid bare as sportscaster he allegedly STOLE from breaks silence

A legendary, retired sportscaster says there are no hard feelings between him and an Iowa news anchor whose viral on-air farewell last week sparked scrutiny from a media watchdog for suspected plagiarism.  

‘I’m simply flattered. I said something that meant something to him. Maybe he just appreciates good writing!’ Dallas’s Dale Hansen, 77, told the Daily Mail this week. 

FTVLive flagged KWQC anchor Dustin Nolan’s on-air resignation speech the day before.

Language used by the journalist was noticeably similar to Hansen’s on-air signoff from WFAA in 2021, the site pointed out.  

The Texas sports anchor told viewers at the time, ‘Television has to be more than sitcoms and cop shows. We need to take people out of their bubbles and their safe places and make them think about the world we live in.’

He also paid tribute to Dannie Livingston, a man who gave him his first TV gig, at KMTV in Omaha back in 1977, despite a lack of experience.

‘If you don’t have a Dannie Livingston in your life, I strongly encourage you to find one. He makes dreams come true,’ Hansen told viewers on September 2, 2021. ‘There will be no more TV tomorrows for me… Goodnight, and goodbye.’

Nolan, on Friday, told his audience: ‘We have to take people out of their bubbles and comfort zones and make them think about the world we all live in.’

He also praised wife Jenna Jackson, the anchor of KWQC’s Quad Cities Today, as she sat by his side. 

‘If you don’t have a Jenna in your life, I suggest you find one. Because she makes dreams come true in every way another human can’t,’ Nolan said.

‘There will be no more TV tomorrows for me… Good day, and goodbye.’

Hansen saw the FTVLive report on Monday after a family member flagged it to him, he told the Daily Mail.

Nolan then reached out to him on Tuesday, Hansen said. 

‘He actually sent me a note saying he grew up in Dallas and watched me a lot, including my farewell speech,’ Hansen said over the phone Wednesday. ‘He told me, you don’t know me but I watched you as a kid in Dallas for years, dozens of times.

‘He said he didn’t intend for it to be so similar.’

Hansen then explained how Nolan outright ‘apologized.’

‘[He] said “it was not my intent to copy anything,”‘ the sports media icon said.

‘He said it wasn’t intentional.’  

Hansen added that he didn’t ‘have any reason to doubt’ the host.

‘The one line that did stick out to me was the one about his wife. It was such a specific line,’ he said.

Now living out his golden years in a Dallas suburb, Hansen said he was grateful for the renewed boost of attention.   

‘I was kind of flattered, for a young guy who saw my work and was inspired by it. Even if he did copy it.’

He conceded he ‘would have appreciated a little shout out or something, if I had such an impact on the young man’s life.’

‘But it did not bother me? Not in the slightest.’

‘Was it osmosis, as they call it? Maybe, Hansen said. ‘That’s what he said.’

Nolan said he had ‘chosen to step away from the news industry’ because Americans should never settle for ‘trends or sanitized news.’

The Daily Mail approached both KWQC and Nolan for comment.