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October 27, 2024 7:21 am  #1


ABC-TV Newsman Who Reported For Three Decades Dies At 89

Some here will know his name and certainly recognize the face - Tom Jarriel was a fixture at ABC News for decades, covering everything from Richard Nixon's resignation to the shuttle explosion. He's been off the air for many years, and even volunteered to work some breaking news after he retired. 

Now his own story has sadly come to an end. Jarriel, who was also a fill-in anchor on World News Tonight, passed away on Thursday. Jarriel's most famous on air moment came in 1968, when he was the only network TV news reporter covering Martin Luther King's visit to Memphis. When the civil rights crusader was shot and killed, he rushed over to the Lorraine Motel to cover the tragedy. 

"Mr. Jarriel interviewed stunned and grieving members of King’s entourage, including jazz saxophonist Ben Branch, who was standing next to King on the motel balcony when the shot was fired. “There was a great deal of confusion and chaos,” said Mr. Jarriel in a broadcast on ABC as he described the aftermath and the manhunt for the shooter, later identified as James Earl Ray."

Jarriel was 89. 

Tom Jarriel, ABC news correspondent and anchor, dies at 89