N.J. Burkett
He has reported on everything from war and diplomacy to crime and politics; from aviation disasters to natural disasters, race relations and police misconduct.
On September 11, 2001, after the two jets struck the World Trade Center, N.J. and his photographer narrowly escaped the subsequent collapse of the South Tower. Their work was later seen on television news broadcasts across the nation and around the world and is on permanent exhibit at the Newseum in Washington, DC.
N.J. spent nearly three months covering the war in Iraq in 2003, and the military build-up that preceded it. He covered the terrorist bombings in Madrid (2004) and London (2005), as well as the war between Israel and Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon (2006), the Israeli-Hamas War in Gaza (2009-10) as well as three Israeli national elections and the death of Palestinian leader, Yasir Arafat (2004). N.J. witnessed the historic Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip (2005) and chronicled the Palestinian popular uprising, known as the Intifadeh, in a series of overseas assignments from 2000-2004.
He was the only local New York television news correspondent to report from Japan after the historic 9.0 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident in 2011, and the first among his colleagues to report from Haiti after the earthquake there, in 2010.
In New York, N.J. has been one of WABC-TV's lead reporters for many of the region's biggest stories, from Superstorm Sandy to the crash of TWA Flight 800, the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School and landmark police misconduct trials. When a growing number of homeless New Yorkers complained that the city's municipal shelters were unsafe, N.J. went undercover for several weeks in the winter of 2001, disguised as a homeless man. He and an undercover photographer slept in New York's most notorious men's shelter.
N. J.'s work has been honored with several of the most prestigious awards in American television news. He is a two-time winner of the coveted Edward R. Murrow Award from the Radio Television Digital News Association (formerly the RTNDA) and a four-time Emmy Award winner, including the Emmy for Outstanding On-Camera Achievement in 2003 and 2007. N.J. has received fifteen Emmy Nominations.
He shared the George Foster Peabody Award and the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award with his colleagues at ABC News for his reporting on the September 11th terrorist attacks. In 2008, he was presented with the Allen B. DuMont Broadcaster of the Year Award by Montclair State University for his "significant contributions to the field of broadcasting."
N.J. is the First Vice Chairman of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, and a former Trustee and past President of the Academy's flagship chapter in New York.
His full name is Newton Jones Burkett. Before joining WABC-TV, N. J. was a correspondent for WFSB-TV, the CBS station in Hartford, CT., from 1986-1989. He holds a B.A. in Political Science and a Master's in International Affairs, both from Columbia University.
N.J's Stories
Mayor Adams meets with President Trump to discuss New York City 'priorities'
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has insisted that cooperating with President Trump would eventually pay off, but has it?
Migrant teens, between 12 and 19 years old, arrested in assault on NYPD officers in Times Square
Police described the suspects as repeat offenders who are no strangers to law enforcement.
Hochul, officials concerned Amtrak East River Tunnel repairs could disrupt LIRR service for years
Plans for major rail and tunnel repairs could create headaches for commuters in New York for three years.
More than 2 dozen alleged Venezuelan gang members indicted in New York City
The suspects, 27 alleged members of a notorious Venezuelan gang, are all charged under the federal statute known as RICO, ordinarily used to target organized crime figures.
20 alleged gang members accused of terrorizing Bronx arrested, prosecutors say
Twenty alleged gang members accused of terrorizing the West Farms section of the Bronx have been indicted, prosecutors said.
NYPD scuba team speaks out about recovery of helicopter parts after deadly crash
They searched desperately but deliberately in zero visibility for survivors in the swift currents of the murky Hudson River.
Rally held in Bryant Park to protest federal funding cuts in NYC, express outrage
A rally was held at the New York Public Library on Tuesday to protest the massive spending cuts by the Trump Administration on New York.
Mayor Eric Adams rides subway with Trump's Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy
President Donald Trump's Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, who's used an expletive to publicly describe the conditions of the New York City subways, rode the subway with Mayor Eric Adams on Friday.
Mayoral candidates back different strategies for public safety in NYC
Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani wants more community policing instead of more officers.
NYPD officers, wounded in Queens shootout in 2024, honored with promotion
Richard Yarusso and his partner, Christopher Abreu, were promoted to the rank of NYPD detectives, nine months after the traffic stop in East Elmhurst last year that nearly killed them.