Sharyn Elizabeth Alfonsi (born June 3, 1972) is an American journalist and correspondent for ''

60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...

''. She made her debut appearance on the show on March 1, 2015. In 2019, she received the prestigious Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award journalism award and has reported from war zones in Iraq, Gaza, and Afghanistan.

Early life and education

Alfonsi attended high school in McLean, Virginia. She graduated with honors from the University of Mississippi in

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in 1994, where she was a James Love Scholar.

Career

Alfonsi began her career in local news at KHBS-KHOG-TV in

Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the List of municipalities in Arkansas, third-most populous city in Arkansas, United States, and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County, Arkansas, Sebastian County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the pop ...

, in 1995 then WVEC-TV in

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, and KIRO-TV in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

, and later WBZ-TV in

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. She was hired by Dan Rather at CBS News in 2002. She left CBS in 2008 to work for

ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to: * ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation * ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company ABC News may a ...

. She returned to CBS in 2011, to work for '' 60 Minutes Sports'', which aired on Showtime. In 2015, Alfonsi made her debut appearance on ''60 Minutes'' with an investigative story about fraud after Hurricane Sandy which led to a congressional investigation and earned her a Writers Guild Award. She appeared multiple times on ''60 Minutes'' in the 2016–2017 season, including an investigative piece on hacking phones that showed how hackers could easily access a Congressman's phone. In 2018, she was featured on the season premiere of ''60 Minutes'' with a revealing interview with

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

, which drew more than 13 million viewers. McCartney admitted that he couldn't read music, was wildly insecure, and worried about his legacy. In 2019, Alfonsi received two

Emmy awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

for her reporting following the Parkland High School shooting. Alfonsi made international news in 2020 when she was the first reporter to obtain photos from inside the jail cell of convicted felon Jeffrey Epstein and his autopsy photos which aired on ''60 Minutes''.

Recognition

In 2020, Alfonsi and her ''60 Minutes'' producers won the Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award for their report ''On the Border'' from the US/Mexico border. During her acceptance speech Alfonsi dedicated the award to everyone who called her a “pain in the ass”. She was also recognized in 2020 with a Gracie Award by the Alliance for Women in Media for Outstanding News/News Magazine talent. She won the Writers Guild Award in 2016 for “Storm After the Storm” which appeared on ''60 Minutes''.

Personal life

Alfonsi is married and has two children. In May 2013, she gave the commencement address at the Meek School of Journalism and New Media at the University of Mississippi. Her speech was named by NPR as one of The Best Commencement Speeches Ever.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alfonsi, Sharyn 1972 births American television reporters and correspondents American women television journalists Living people People from McLean, Virginia University of Mississippi alumni CBS News people 21st-century American women journalists 21st-century American journalists