Riordan at 70: Sal Castaneda

Antonio Maffei ’20, Website Editor

Sal Castaneda ’82 is a reporter for KTVU Channel 2. Many see him in the morning reporting on the traffic, as well as the co-host for the popular morning news show, “The Nine.” What you may not know about him is that he is also a Riordan graduate from the Class of 1982. Castaneda shared his experience as a Crusader and what he’s been up to recently.

Sal Castaneda was born and raised a native San Franciscan and grew up not too far from the Riordan campus. Years later, he decided to attend Riordan, and fondly remembers his first day of school as a freshman.

“It felt like a challenge. I was going to rise to the challenge of turning from a young man into a man.”

During his time at Riordan, based on the 1982 yearbook, Castaneda was part of The Crusader staff. How has Riordan changed over the decades? Castaneda stated, “Same as it is now, but much smaller. They’ve added onto the school with new facilities but it was still a great school.” He’s very proud of his alma mater and said, “I’m the first guy to sing its praises in the real world.”

He tells people how great of a school it is, and what it means to be a Crusader. Castaneda said, ‘It means you’re part of a tradition of many people before and after you. You are sharing history with people.”

After Riordan, Castaneda got started doing radio on K 10.01, which now known as STAR 101.33. He began working for KTVU Channel 2 as a traffic anchor and continues doing that today. He has a new gig, which began in 2015, as co-host for “The Nine,” a fun and entertaining news show put on by KTVU. Castaneda said, “I have a lot of fun and KTVU is a great place and the ratings are just great.”