In the early 1990s, Jodi was a host of "Close Up" on C-SPAN, a weekly public affairs program that featured a high school student audience. She later worked as a radio and television traffic reporter for Metro Traffic in San Francisco. From 1993 to 1996, Applegate hosted "Good Morning Arizona" on KTVK in Phoenix. Applegate was also an anchor at KTVN in Reno, NV. In Reno is where Applegate met Rob Nikoleski, who was the sports news director at a competing Reno station, KOLO. They eventually married, but divorced after 8 years.