Longtime News Anchor Who Worked for ABC, CBS and More Dead: Ernie Anastos Was 82

Beloved journalist Ernie Anastos has died. He was 82 years old.

The New York staple, who worked as a journalist for various outlets for more than four decades, died on March 11. His family confirmed the news to a New York station, Deadline reports. 

He began his career in Boston radio in the mid-1970s before making the switch to television with an anchor role at WPRI in Providence, RI. He moved to WABC in 1978 and was named anchor of its 11 p.m. Eyewitness News later that year. He later added the 5 p.m. newscast to his duties, where he remained until 1982. He returned in 1989 when his replacement moved to the West Coast.

Throughout his career, he worked for ABC and CBS affiliate stations. While at WCBS, he helped anchor the station’s coverage of the September 11 terrorist attacks including on the World Trade Center.

He would make waves with a five-year contract with $2 million a year at rival Fox affiliate WNYW-TV in 2005, where he led its evening newscasts and stayed for 15 years. He left the station to attend Harvard Business School.

For his work, he earned 30 local News Emmys during his career and received an Edward R. Murrow Award for broadcast excellence. He was also inducted into the New York State Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame in 2024.

His wife, Kelly Anastos, said he had died of pneumonia at a hospital, The New York Times reports. He was beloved by his colleagues and fans.

“People like Ernie,” Dari Alexander, a former co-anchor with Mr. Anastos at Fox 5, said in 2010. “He’s never let them down.” He was so popular that the Beastie Boys gave him a shout-out in their 1992 song “Finger Lickin’ Good.” In the song, the line reads: “I’ll be in the paper, the news with Ernie Anastos.” Prior to his work in journalism, Anastos considered joining the priesthood, as his paternal grandfather was one of the first Greek Orthodox priests to be ordained in the United States. In addition to his wife, he is survived by their two children, Nina Floyd and Phillip Anastos, and four grandchildren.