Former DC news anchor Renee Poussaint dies at 77

One of the D.C. area’s pioneering news women has died. Renee Poussaint died Saturday at the age of 77.

No cause was given.

Poussaint was the co-anchor of the 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts at Channel 7/WJLA for more than a decade, starting in 1978.

She began her career in broadcasting in 1970 working in Chicago.

Poussaint was a fill-in for Peter Jennings on ABC World News Tonight.

She also worked as a correspondent for CBS and ABC, winning three Emmy awards for her work.

In recent years, Poussaint was an adjunct lecturer at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland.

Carrie Shokraei

Carrie is a writer and reporter for WTOP. She’s been in the news business for more than 20 years, starting out her career in small market TV as a reporter and anchor.

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