Tom Lyden, veteran reporter and investigator, leaving FOX 9 after 30 years

So long, Tom Lyden

After 30 years reporting and anchoring numerous impactful events for FOX 9, Tom Lyden is saying goodbye… At least for now.

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (FOX 9) - Tom Lyden, veteran reporter and FOX 9 Investigator, is leaving FOX 9 this month.

Lyden will be his 86-year-old mother's primary caretaker near Mariposa, California – something he has been doing while simultaneously contributing to the FOX 9 Investigators since 2022.

Lyden started at KMSP-TV in September 1993. He set and then continued to raise the bar of local television news, over and over again.

Tom Lyden from the vault: Popeye's Chicken drama

In 2009, Tom Lyden was on the scene as a Popeye's store on Lake Street in Minneapolis was swarmed with customers looking for a deal on chicken that had been advertised in TV. One problem, the store wasn't honoring the deal.

His career at FOX 9 included notable work, including "The River Road" series, which uncovered a religious cult operating in Minnesota whose leader, Victor Barnard, sexually assaulted his underage followers. His reporting led to an international manhunt for Barnard, resulting in his capture, conviction, and incarceration.

'Are you ok?' Toll of COVID, politics, unrest

Three long years later, the pandemic nearly over, another election quickly approaching, we wanted to ask a simple question: Are you okay? The answer for many is fraught and complicated.

Other works include his coverage of Archbishop John Nienstedt, who was the former archbishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis when it was charged with failing to protect children from sexual abuse; his The Last Harvest series, an in-depth series on issues facing Minnesota farmers, the U.S. farm economy and the future of farming in America; his "North at a Crossroads", which looks discriminatory practices in home buying; and Minnesota Untold series, a series of reports examining and deconstructing Minnesota history through the frame of current issues and controversies; well as work covering Hurricane Katrina and serial killer Andrew Cunanan. His reporting on the mysterious death of conspiracy filmmaker David Crowley was also featured in a full-length documentary.

His reports have led to new laws, put criminals behind bars, led to a politician's resignation, and a governor's open hostility. You can view some of his archival work here.

The Last Harvest

For the last eight months, FOX 9 has been talking to farmers in every corner of their state for the Last Harvest.

Lyden has won more than 20 Regional Emmy Awards, and five Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards for his reporting.

The Last Harvest received national recognition with a 2019 Sigma Delta Chi Award for best documentary. The Minnesota (un)told series received a National Edward R. Murrow Award.

Tune into FOX 9 at 9 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 21, for Lyden's farewell package.