Gloria Rojas

Gloria Rojas (April 1, 1939 – February 2, 2022) was an American journalist. She was one of the first Latina broadcast journalists in New York City as well as one of the few journalists who has worked for each of the Big Four television networks owned-and-operated stations in the New York metropolitan area.

Early life and education Rojas was born on April 1, 1939, in the Bronx to Agustina Rojas, who was a housekeeper and nanny, and Rafael Astolfo Rojas, who died when she was 10. She graduated Hunter College High School and attended the State University of New York at Albany, where she received a degree in education. —at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where she would later study journalism as a graduate student.

Career Before going into television, Rojas was a school teacher who taught middle school and high school students. In 1964, Rojas made her television debut on public television station WNDT (now known as WNET) where she presented a bilingual education program at the station, where its audience included Spanish-speaking audiences learning English as well as English-speaking audiences learning Spanish. While working at the station, she also worked with Geraldo Rivera and Gil Noble in co-hosting Like It Is. Rojas helped launch the career of Rivera when she told him that WABC was looking to hire a bilingual reporter. She would remain with the station as its New Jersey correspondent until 1986, when she went to work for WNBC. Rojas retired in 1991.

Rojas died from complications of cancer and kidney failure at a nursing home in Cambridge, Maryland, on February 2, 2022, at the age of 82.