Jovita Moore, a beloved anchor at Atlanta’s Channel 2 Action News, has died, seven months after being diagnosed with “an aggressive form of brain cancer,” reports WSB-TV. Moore died late Thursday night at age 53.
Moore was a native New Yorker who earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Bennington College and a Master’s of Science in Broadcast Journalism from Columbia University’s School of Journalism. Her career began with an internship at the New York Times, after which she spent stints at Memphis’ WMC-TV and Arkansas’ KFSM before joining the Channel 2 Action News team in 1998. She would ascend to the main anchor desk in 2012, earning several Emmy awards during her tenure at the network, as well as induction into The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Southeast Chapter’s prestigious “Silver Circle.” Moore was also a member of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ).
It was Atlanta that Moore “proudly called” home, reports WSB-TV, adding: “She donated countless hours to civic associations and non-profit organizations across metro Atlanta. She mentored students and sat on several boards of directors.”
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms issued a statement on behalf of herself and her husband, expressing that they were both “deeply saddened by the loss of our friend.”
“Even those who did not know her personally felt a deep and personal connection to Jovita. She loved Atlanta dearly,” she wrote (h/t CNN). “May her beautiful spirit soar. Jovita will be truly missed.”
In April 2021, Moore was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a common form of brain cancer, after two masses were found on her brain. The condition is non-hereditary, not caused by external lifestyle factors and is, to date, incurable.
“Oh, how we love our friend,” said her evening news co-anchor Justin Farmer on air Friday, as reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “There is no making sense of a tragic death such as this. The pain is going to stay for awhile. We pray for her children. I’ll share this with you. Jovita told me a few weeks ago when we visited in her living room. She said, ‘Yup, Farmer, got a bad hand. Sometimes, that is just life.’”
According to Channel 2, Moore is survived by her mother, two children and a stepdaughter, “who she called the most important accomplishments of her life.”