Gio Benitez
| Gio Benitez | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Giovani Benitez October 29, 1985 Miami, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Florida International University (B.A.) |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Agent | N.S. Bienstock / United Talent Agency |
| Known for | Television Reporter |
Giovani "Gio" Benitez (born October 29, 1985) is a correspondent for ABC News, who appears on Good Morning America, World News Tonight, 20/20, and Nightline. He also hosts the Fusion version of Nightline. He has won two television news Emmy awards. He is fluent in both English and Spanish.
Early life and education
Giovani Benitez was born on October 29, 1985 in Miami, Florida. He is a 2004 graduate of Miami Coral Park High School. In 2008, Benitez graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Sociology from Florida International University.
Career
Benitez joined ABC News in 2013. He has covered a wide range of stories for the network, including the Boston Marathon bombing, the Alabama child held hostage underground in an eight-day standoff, the American mother stuck in a Mexican jail, and nearly every major snow storm that swept the nation during the winter of 2013.
Before joining ABC News in 2013, he was a reporter for WFOR, the CBS owned-and-operated TV station in Miami, where he covered the 2012 Presidential election and reported extensively on the Trayvon Martin case.
In January 2010, Benitez traveled to Haiti to cover relief efforts following the devastating earthquake. His return flight to Miami was turned into a rescue mission, as he traveled with injured Haitian evacuees to the island of Curaçao. In June 2009, he was the first reporter to ever shoot a TV story entirely with an iPhone.
Benitez is the recipient of two regional Emmy Awards and is an eight-time nominee. Most notably, he was nominated for his investigative series on alleged police brutality which resulted in two Miami officers being forced to turn in their guns and badges.
Before becoming a reporter, Benitez was an investigative producer at WFOR and worked on stories involving Medicare fraud, public safety and government corruption. He started at the station as an Emma L. Bowen Foundation work-study scholar. His first on-air job was actually on the radio, on the nationally-syndicated consumer electronics show, Into Tomorrow with Dave Graveline.