Jessica Kartalija

Jessica Kartalija began her journalism career as a reporter for KYMA-TV in Yuma, Arizona. Following this, she worked as an anchor and reporter for KASA/KOB-TV in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from June 2003 to June 2006. Her career then led her to CBS News Baltimore, Maryland (WJZ-TV), where she served as an anchor and reporter for 12 years, from July 2006 to 2018, often anchoring the 5 pm news. She is a native of San Diego, California, and graduated from Penn State University with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism and a minor in Spanish. In 2016, she earned a master’s degree in marketing communications and media studies from The Johns Hopkins University.

From 2018 to 2024, Ms. Kartalija was an anchor for CBS3 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. During her tenure in Philadelphia, she was recognized for her work, receiving the 2024 “Television Broadcaster of the Year” award from the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters. Subsequently, she transitioned to WPVI-TV (6abc) in Philadelphia, serving as a reporter for Action News. In September 2025, she joined NewsNation as a national correspondent, based in the network’s New York bureau. In this role, she reports across the network’s daytime and primetime programming.

Beyond her broadcast work, Ms. Kartalija is an adjunct professor of public speaking and journalism at Villanova University. She also holds positions on the Dean’s Advancement Council for the Bellisario College of Communications at Penn State and the advisory board of Horizons Greater Philadelphia. Her community involvement includes working with the Special Olympics, The House of Ruth Maryland, The Women’s Initiative Network (WIN) at Kennedy Krieger Institute, and serving on the Board of Trustees at the Irvine Nature Center. She has also made appearances in media productions such as the HBO series Servant, House of Cards on Netflix, and the movie Transformers.