Steve Osunsami
Osunsami
Born (1971-02-09) February 9, 1971
Washington, D.C., U.S.
EducationUniversity of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Occupations
  • Journalist
  • news correspondent
SpouseJoe Remillard

Steve Osunsami[1] is a Nigerian-American journalist. He is a senior national correspondent for ABC News in Atlanta, Georgia, contributing reports to World News with David Muir, Good Morning America, and other station broadcasts and platforms since his start with ABC News in 1997.[2][3][4]

Early life and education

Osunsami was born in Washington, D.C., to parents who were Nigerian immigrants.[5] Osunsami has shared that he came from poverty and is a graduate of the Head Start Program.[6] He is a graduate of University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana,[7] where being an Illinois Broadcasting Association intern and writing for The Daily Illini helped launch his career.[8][9]

Career

Osunsami started his career at WREX-TV in Rockford, Illinois, WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and at KOMO-TV in Seattle before becoming a correspondent for ABC News in 1997.[10]

His work has taken him all over the country, from covering riots in Baltimore and Ferguson Missouri,[11] to the 2000 United States presidential election recount in Florida,[12] and the shooting deaths of nine black parishioners at the Charleston church shooting in 2015.[13]

Osunsami was the subject of political debate after he was one of several African-American reporters who showed emotion live on the air on the night of the election of the nation's first black president, Barack Obama.[14]

Amidst the political and racial unrest of 2020, Osunsami covered the killing of Rayshard Brooks and the murder of Ahmaud Arbery.[15]

Osunsami wrote and hosted the ABC podcast "Soul of a Nation: Tulsa's Buried Truth," which explores the 1921 Tulsa race massacre through archival audio and conversations with historians. Speaking on his personal connection to the project, Osunsami said, "It shocks me, as a high school and college-educated Black American, that until recently, the details of the Tulsa massacre have escaped me, and I think that’s a shame. It says a ton about the way we, as Americans, record history that’s racist and ugly. We like to give it the silent treatment. And like a fight with someone in your family, simply ignoring the injury never makes it go away."[16]

An essay by Osunsami was featured in the book, “My America: What My Country Means to Me, by 150 Americans from All Walks of Life,” edited by Hugh Downs.[17]

Osunsami has won or been nominated for many awards, including a 2016 National Emmy Award.[18]

Personal

Osunsami identifies as gay and has spoken publicly on both his experiences as a black gay man in journalism, and a black member of the LGBTQ community.[19] He is married to Joe Remillard.[20]

References

  1. ↑ "Steve Osunsami". ABC News.
  2. ↑ Lindsay Powers (August 23, 2011). "ABC News' Steve Osunsami Reveals Childhood Poverty". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Steve Osunsami, Mara Schiavocampo Take Home Two NABJ Awards". Adweek. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Steve Osunsami Biography". ABC News. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  5. ↑ Bainbridge, Julia (November 16, 2017). "Home for Dinner: Steve Osunsami, ABC News correspondent". Atlanta Magazine. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  6. ↑ Powers, Lindsay (August 23, 2011). "ABC News' Steve Osunsami Reveals Childhood Poverty". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  7. ↑ "ABC Reporter Steve Osunsami At UTC". chattanoogan.com. March 5, 2002. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  8. ↑ Will, Kaitlyn. "EIU student earns exclusive IBA multicultural internship". eiu.edu. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  9. ↑ Allendorf, Faith (April 6, 2022). "What he brings with him 'every day': ABC News' Steve Osunsami reflects on journey, time at UI". The Daily Illini. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  10. ↑ "ABC Reporter Steve Osunsami At UTC". The Chattanoogan. March 5, 2002. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  11. ↑ Steinberg, Brian (April 28, 2015). "TV News: Baltimore Riots Draw Lester Holt, Anderson Cooper, Bill Hemmer". Variety. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  12. ↑ "CAMPAIGN 2000 (GORE VS. BUSH: FLORIDA RECOUNT)". Vanderbilt News Archive. Vanderbilt. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  13. ↑ Kim, Susanna (June 24, 2015). "Charleston Shooting Victims Remembered as Funerals to Begin". ABC News. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  14. ↑ Folkenflik, David (November 6, 2008). "Do We Want Our Journalists to Get Emotional?". NPR. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  15. ↑ Saunders, Patrick (December 8, 2020). "ABC reporter Steve Osunsami marks 23 years in LGBTQ Atlanta". Project Q Atlanta. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
  16. ↑ Connor, Jay (March 31, 2021). "Exclusive: ABC Audio's Soul of a Nation: Tulsa's Buried Truth Unearths Black Wall Street's Painful History". The Root. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  17. ↑ "My America: What My Country Means to Me, by 150 Americans from All Walks of Life". Barnes and Nobles. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Osunsami '93 JOURN, nominated for Emmy". College of Media at University of Illinois. July 25, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  19. ↑ Saunders, Patrick (December 8, 2020). "ABC reporter Steve Osunsami marks 23 years in LGBTQ Atlanta". Project Q Atlanta. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
  20. ↑ "Home for Dinner: Steve Osunsami, ABC News correspondent". Atlanta Magazine. November 16, 2017. Retrieved March 7, 2018.


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