Pat Wilde, a 1974 graduate of Wayland High School, a friend and a serious basketball referee over many years, told me not long ago that in his humble opinion the best news broadcaster in the journalism business is Ana Kasparian.

He also swore that it wasn’t just because she’s easy on the eyes.

An unabashed progressive, she has provided me with the real example of “fair and balanced” in the field during an age in which some can make that same claim and then poop all over it when they present news and views.

I watched a couple of solid examples earlier this month, and, like with Wilde, it solidified my perception of her as “fair and balanced,” even though she tells viewers she’s a lefty.

Kasparian issued a public apology for her coverage of the Florida woman who claimed she was told to lie about Gov. Ron DeSantis and his activities, which led to her firing. Kasparian admitted she found the woman’s testimony credible, but later found some troubling evidence to the contrary.

She apologized for not checking into her more deeply and finding errors in what she said and did, and even accused herself of letting her personal bias get in the way of “fair and balanced” reportage.

A more recent example came earlier this week when she presented editorial comment lamenting the single-mindedness of the “no nukes” political movement. Noting that Germany now has totally turned its back on nuclear power by shutting down all generators and plants, she opined that perhaps it wasn’t such a good idea to go all the way.

Kasparian maintained that in countries in which nuclear power has been forsaken, they have had to turn back to oil and coal to fill energy needs in the meantime.

This has been reflected in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s suggestion that the Palisades nuclear plant be restarted, all in the interests of providing the people with clean energy while they await the coming of solar, wind and other newer forms.

Kasparian acknowledged the risks, such as the ones we have seen with Chernobyl and Fukushima, but they do not occur often and there’s a certain amount of risk in living every day. The key is to be vigilant in regulating these plants and finding safe ways to dispose of nuclear waste.

Kasparian rightly insists some clean nuclear energy still be made available in a transition period between “dirty” and “polluting” oil and coal and the promise of the future with solar and wind.

I personally thank the unabashedly progressive Kasparian for her sincere attempt to be in earnest “fair and balanced.”