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A four-time Edward R. Murrow Award winner, Eaton has covered breaking news and major trials across the country, including the Virginia Tech shooting, the D.C. Sniper execution, and the murder cases of Yeardley Love and Hannah Graham. But he is perhaps best known in ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ for his extensive coverage of the Chad and Lori Daybell case, which has consumed the past six years of his career.

Speaking to Dr. Kirsten Mink’s class, Eaton reflected on memorable moments from his career, noting that he had dreamed of becoming a reporter since he was a boy. One of those defining moments came as he stood outside the execution of D.C. sniper John Allen Muhammad alongside veteran journalists he had grown up watching on television, including Anderson Cooper. “I thought, ‘This is crazy. I’m just this guy from ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ. If Anderson Cooper can do this, I got this,’” he recalled.

He also spoke about the Virginia Tech shooting, at the time, the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. Covering the reopening of the building where the attack took place, Eaton sought out survivors and family members of victims. “It’s the real stories that matter,” he said, recounting how he helped connect a mother with the paramedic who cared for her daughter, who had been shot in the tragedy and survived.

Eaton’s real involvement with the Daybell case began with a press release from the Rexburg Police Department about two missing children, followed by a release about their uncooperative parents. Sources were unusually tight-lipped, and tips were scarce until Eaton received word the couple might be in Hawaii.

To this day, he says, he does not know who sent him the tip. Acting on instinct, he flew there and famously confronted the couple on camera with the question that gained nationwide attention: “Where are the kids?”

Because of slow internet connection on the island, it took three hours to upload the now-iconic three-minute video. “I woke up the next morning and my email had blown up,” Eaton said. “That led to the next six years of my life.”

Reporting on the case, Eaton said he had to develop trusted sources, nurture relationships, and carefully decide when to hold information back. Updates could have filled the news every day, he shared. “I’ve updated this story in hotel closets while my family is sleeping,” he said, underscoring the personal toll and dedication the coverage demanded. 

Students also heard Eaton’s perspective on courtroom processes, jury selection, and the ethical challenges of covering sensitive stories. He spoke candidly about sitting through graphic testimony, reviewing autopsy and toxicology reports, and the constant judgment calls his team faces.

“We have conversations all the time,” he explained, describing how his team weighs each decision regarding coverage very carefully. “Is this ethical? Is this something we should show on our channel? Are we sharing too much, not enough?”

Since gaining worldwide attention as a reporter, Eaton shared that family members of missing or murdered loved ones reach out to him almost daily to ask if there’s anything he can do to help them. He acknowledged the mental toll of reporting on tragedy and how he balances it with uplifting stories: “I cover positive stories too, not just the heavy stuff.”

Eaton’s creative approach has taken him from ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ newsrooms to national programs including CNN, The Today Show, Dr. Phil, and Good Morning America. While on campus, Eaton also recorded an “ISU Impact: Engaging With The College of Arts and Letters” podcast episode where he shares details of the work he’s been engaged in. The episode is available at