Ninan speaks fluent Malayalam.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON, DC: Indian American television reporter Reena Ninan has been named co-anchor of “America This Morning” and “World News Now,” ABC News president James Goldston announced Wednesday.
Ninan, who joins T.J. Holmes at the anchor’s desk, had previously reported for “ABC World News with Diane Sawyer,” “Good Morning America,” and “Nightline.”
She has traveled with the president Barack Obama to Asia, with Secretary Hillary Clinton to the Middle East; she covered the aftermath of the Moore, Oklahoma tornado, and she reported over the final weeks of Nelson Mandela’s life, according to a statement released by Goldston and ABC.
“Reena is an accomplished and versatile journalist who has reported around the world and across the U.S.,” Goldston said.
Prior to joining ABC, Ninan served as the Middle East correspondent for Fox News, reporting from countries that included Libya, Indonesia, India, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq.
Goldston said Ninan has done a terrific job delivering a mix of breaking news, lively conversation, and quirky, fun reports to ABC’s audiences. In addition to her anchor duties, he stated she will also report across all of the company’s broadcasts and digital platforms.
When she’s not working, Ninan is an ambitious amateur chef and is currently trying to perfect her mother’s trademark fish curry, according to Goldston’s statement. She speaks fluent Malayalam (the dialect from her family’s home state in Kerala, India) and studied Arabic and Hebrew. In her off-hours, she enjoys spending time with her four-year-old son, Jack; her two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Kate; and her husband, Kevin, who is a writer currently working on a book about China.