Newman, longtime KTLA biz reporter, dies at 87

Jim Newman

Jim Newman, a longtime television business journalist in the Los Angeles market, has died at the age of 87.

Newman’s career as a journalist spanned over 30 years. His most recent work comes from KABC-TV in Los Angeles, where he provided insightful financial information on the morning, midday and 5 p.m. newscasts of Eyewitness News.

He previously worked at KTLA-TV in Los Angeles where he was the station’s business reporter. Prior to KTLA, Newman worked for ABC-TV where he was Business Week magazine’s TV correspondent. Before that he was heard on both the NBC and CBS Radio Networks. He was also the economics editor for the Associated Press in Washington, D.C.

A former president of the Economic Broadcasters Association, he is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and the Overseas Press Club.

Newman was the recipient of numerous awards, including the prestigious Janus Award for Excellence in Financial Broadcasting, the Overseas Press Club Award for International Business Reporting, is a two-time winner of the Los Angeles Press Club’s “Business News Reporter of the Year” and has three Emmys for TV reporting.

Quoted by a former U.S. Treasury Secretary as “an extremely capable and thoughtful member of the Fourth Estate,” Newman has been recognized by New York University for his contributions to business journalism. He also taught a class on Business Reporting at the University of Southern California.

Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.

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Gene Inger says:
June 18, 2019 at 12:32 pm
My sincere condolences on Jim Newman's passing. I had the pleasure of anchoring the Nation's first Financial TV Channel in Los Angeles; and Jim was my news guy and often interviewed me about the markets and economy. Although not mentioned in this obituary; KWHY-Channel 22 was the first in 1969; and Jim was also on KFWB radio (we were both on KTLA at times). We lost touch as I moved to the East Coast, CNBC and now internet analysis. I feel like the last survivor of the early days; and hearing of Jim's passing is a reminder of the transition of business journalism. He was a fine and respected colleague. RIP.