{{Short description|American journalist (born 1982)}} {{Use American English|date=April 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}} {{Infobox person | name = Whit Johnson | image = | alt = | caption = | birth_name = Stephen Whitney Johnson | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1982|6|25}} | birth_place = San Francisco, California, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | alma_mater = San Francisco State University (B.A.) | occupation = Journalist | years_active = | television = KSL-TV<br />KNDO<br />KNDU<br />CBS News (2009–2012)<br />KNBC (2012–2017)<br />ABC News (2018–present) | spouse = {{Marriage|Andrea Fujii|2007}} | children = 2 | website = }} '''Stephen Whitney''' "'''Whit'''" '''Johnson'''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Stephen Whitney Johnson, Born 06/25/1982 in California |url=https://www.californiabirthindex.org/birth/stephen_whitney_johnson_born_1982_15409417 |access-date=February 24, 2023 |website=californiabirthindex.org}}</ref> (born June 25, 1982) is an American journalist known as the co-anchor of the weekend editions of ''Good Morning America'', the anchor of the Saturday edition of ''ABC World News Tonight'', and the fill-in and substitute anchor of ''Good Morning America'', and ''ABC World News Tonight''.
== Early life == Johnson was born and raised in San Francisco.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Whit |date=February 3, 2024 |title=Video Lifelong 49ers fan and 'GMA' anchor gets a Super Bowl surprise |url=https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Living/video/lifelong-49ers-fan-gma-anchor-gets-super-bowl-106919401 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240205221301/https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Living/video/lifelong-49ers-fan-gma-anchor-gets-super-bowl-106919401 |archive-date=February 5, 2024 |access-date=June 10, 2024 |website=ABC News |language=en}}</ref> He graduated from San Francisco State University with a B.A. degree in Television and Radio Broadcasting.<ref name="ABC Bio">{{cite web|title = Whit Johnson Official Biography | website = ABC News | date = February 5, 2021 | url = https://abcnews.go.com/ABCNews/whit-johnson-official-biography/story?id=53779441 | access-date = May 9, 2022 }}</ref> Johnson credits his stepfather, TV and radio host Dean Edell, with having introduced him to the world of broadcasting.<ref name="NBC4">{{cite web|title = Whit Johnson Joins NBC4 Southern California as Co-Anchor and General Assignment Reporter| date = August 3, 2012 | website = Business Wire | url = https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120803005857/en/Whit-Johnson-Joins-NBC4-Southern-California-as-Co-Anchor-and-General-Assignment-Reporter | access-date = May 9, 2022 }}</ref>
== Career == Johnson began his on-air career in 2005 with NBC affiliate KNDO/KNDU-TV in Yakima/Tri-Cities, Washington, as a reporter and evening weekend anchor. He next worked for Salt Lake City, Utah, NBC affiliate KSL-TV as a reporter and as an anchor on evening weekdays.<ref name="NBC4" />
Johnson joined CBS News as a Washington, D.C.–based network correspondent and fill-in anchor in 2009. While there, much of his coverage focused on the White House, on Capitol Hill and foreign policy issues.<ref name="CBS">{{cite web|title = Whit Johnson Joins CBS News Newspath| date = August 27, 2009 | website = ViacomCBS Press Express | url = https://www.viacomcbspressexpress.com/cbs-news-and-stations/releases/view?id=22616 | access-date = May 10, 2022 }}</ref><ref name="WhitJohnson">{{cite web|title = About Whit| website = whitjohnson.com| url = https://whitjohnson.com | access-date = May 10, 2022 }}</ref> He reported on the death of Osama bin Laden and interviewed then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over the course of her tour of the Middle East in 2011.<ref name="ABC Bio" /><ref name="NBC4" />
In 2012, Johnson joined KNBC in Los Angeles as an anchor and general-assignment reporter. In that role, he reported from Boston for Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential run, covered the Asiana flight 214 crash landing at San Francisco International Airport, and reported on the Washington D.C. Navy Yard mass shootings. In June 2014, he joined ''Today in L.A.'', as co-anchor alongside Daniella Guzman.<ref name="ABC Bio" /><ref name="NBC4" /> He traveled to Sochi to cover the 2014 Winter Olympics and later to Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Summer Olympics. In Rio, he co-hosted a special report on the Opening Ceremony that won a Los Angeles Emmy.<ref name="ABC Bio" /><ref name="Rio">{{cite web |date=July 22, 2017 |title=Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards 2017: Full Winners List |url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/los-angeles-area-emmy-awards-winners-list-1202501936/ |access-date=May 12, 2022 |website=Variety}}</ref>
ABC News announced Johnson had joined as a correspondent in March 2018.<ref name="ABC">{{cite web |last=Petski |first=Denise |date=March 12, 2018 |title=ABC News Taps KNBC's Whit Johnson As NY-Based Correspondent |url=https://deadline.com/2018/03/abc-news-knbc-whit-johnson-ny-based-correspondent-1202335868/ |access-date=May 10, 2022 |website=Deadline}}</ref> In September of that same year, Johnson took over as a co-anchor of the weekend editions of ''Good Morning America''.<ref name="GMA Weekend Anchor">{{cite tweet | author="Johnson, Whit" | user = whitjohnson| date = September 30, 2018 | number = 1046382152710070273 | title = First show in the books with new weekend team on @GMA!! | access-date = May 10, 2022 }}</ref>
Johnson served as a lead correspondent for ABC News throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 2020 election cycle he covered election week from Arizona as well as the Democratic primaries.<ref name="ABC Bio" /> On February 1, 2021, ABC announced that Johnson would become Saturday anchor of ''ABC World News Tonight'', replacing the departing Tom Llamas, but that he would also continue to co-anchor ''Good Morning America'' on the weekends.<ref>{{cite news|title=Linsey Davis, Whit Johnson To Anchor Weekend 'World News Tonight'|work=Deadline |url=https://deadline.com/2021/02/linsey-davis-whit-johnson-world-news-tonight-abc-news-1234684585/|author=Ted Johnson|date=February 1, 2021|access-date=February 2, 2021}}</ref>
== Personal life == Johnson lives in the New York area with his wife (married on August 11, 2007), Andrea Fujii, an ABC News reporter, and their two daughters.<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 30, 2012 |title=Andrea Fujii |url=https://magazine.scu.edu/classnote/andrea-fujii/ |access-date=March 1, 2021 |website=Santa Clara Magazine |language=en}}</ref>
In 2018, Johnson unwittingly found two of his father's brothers through a 23andMe DNA test.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Johnson|first=Whit|date=July 13, 2018|title=DNA test 'accidentally unlocks family mystery' for ABC News correspondent|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/dna-test-accidentally-unlocks-family-mystery-abc-news/story?id=56567642|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=January 27, 2022|website=ABC News}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == *[https://abcnews.go.com/ABCNews/whit-johnson-official-biography/story?id=53779441 Whit Johnson's Biography] – ''ABC News'' * {{IMDb name|3857103}} * {{Instagram|whitjohnsontv}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Whit}} Category:1982 births Category:Living people Category:American television journalists Category:Television news anchors from Los Angeles Category:Journalists from Greater Los Angeles Category:Journalists from San Francisco Category:San Francisco State University alumni Category:CBS News people Category:21st-century American male journalists Category:21st-century American journalists