Alison Starling

Alison Starling-Alexander
Born (1973-10-28) October 28, 1973 (age 51)
EducationUniversity of Florida
Occupation(s)News anchor and journalist
Years active1995–2023
EmployerWJLA-TV (August 2003 – November 22, 2023)
SpousePeter Alexander (2012–present)
Children2
Parent(s)Bruce and Dolores Starling

Alison Starling-Alexander (born October 28, 1973) is an American former television news anchor and journalist. She was a co-anchor of WJLA-TV's weekday 4 PM and 5PM newscasts, and an anchor semi-regularly on the noon newscast. She stepped down from the station on November 22, 2023, citing a desire to spend more time with her family.

Early life

Starling is from Orlando, Florida.[1] She is from a military family and spent part of her childhood in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area while her father worked for the Office of the United States Trade Representative. She later returned to DC to be a congressional intern.[2] Per a DNA test she and her husband took, she is of mostly British and Irish descent.[3] Starling graduated from University of Florida in 1995. She then earned a Cultural Ambassadorial Scholarship from Rotary International to study in Tours, France for six months in 1995.[4]

Career

Starling interviews children's author Marc Brown at the National Book Festival in 2022

Early career

Starling career began at WDEF-TV in Chattanooga, Tennessee, as a reporter and anchor. She then worked for three years [5] at KIRO-TV in Seattle, Washington, where she covered the Seattle earthquake.

WJLA-TV

Starling joined WJLA-TV in August 2003. One year later, she became co-anchor of Good Morning Washington (5-7AM) and ABC7 News at Noon. In 2005, Washingtonian named her one of the area's rising stars in local television news. On November 3, 2023, Starling announced that she would be stepping down from the station to focus more on spending time with her family. Her final newscast aired on November 22, 2023, the day before Thanksgiving.[6][7]

Personal

Starling met NBC News correspondent Peter Alexander in 2001.[8] In August 2011 they became engaged in France.[9] They married Saturday April 21, 2012, atop the Newseum in Washington, D.C.[10]

In February 2013 she announced her pregnancy,[11] and shared that she was having a girl.[12]

On December 11, 2014, The Washington Post noted that Starling was expecting the couple's second child.[13] The couple is raising their children Jewish.[14]

References

  1. ^ Alison Starling [@AlisonStarling7] (12 June 2016). "So incredibly sad for my hometown" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. ^ "NEWSMAKER/Alison Starling – Local news, with a Gator's sparkle | Alexandria Times | Alexandria, VA". 17 April 2008.
  3. ^ Starling, Alison (May 22, 2013). "Alison Starling's baby: DNA ancestry test 23andME". WJLA. Starling's ancestry is clearly northern European, particularly Britain and Ireland. Her husband's, Peter, are Ashkenazic Jews from Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
  4. ^ "NEWSMAKER/Alison Starling – Local news, with a Gator's sparkle | Alexandria Times | Alexandria, VA". 17 April 2008.
  5. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poP17uERCwg Alison Starling Interview At The Newseum
  6. ^ Kronzer, Jessica "After 20 years with 7News, Alison Starling is stepping away from anchoring" WTOP Radio, November 3, 2023.
  7. ^ Rogers, Winston (2023-11-10). "Behind the legacy: A look back with longtime 7News Anchor Alison Starling". WJLA. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  8. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: Inside Media: Alison Starling & Peter Alexander. YouTube.
  9. ^ The Reliable Source (2011-08-02). "Love, etc.: Alison Starling and Peter Alexander are engaged". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  10. ^ The Reliable Source (2012-04-25). "Love, etc.: Alison Starling and Peter Alexander wed". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  11. ^ The Reliable Source (2013-02-05). "Love, etc.: A baby for Alison Starling and Peter Alexander". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
  12. ^ http://www.wjla.com/articles/2013/03/alison-starling-s-baby-leon-s-sweatpants-the-big-sonogram-and-it-s-a-girl--86039.html It's a Girl
  13. ^ Helena Andrews-Dyer (2021-12-02) [2014-12-11]. "WJLA news anchor Alison Starling is pregnant with her second child". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.[please check these dates]
  14. ^ Marx, Ben (February 15, 2018). "NBC News' Peter Alexander on Cubs Fanaticism, Ballet, and His Proudest Moment as a Dad". Fatherly. I'm Jewish, the girls go to a Jewish preschool. One of my favorite joys is sharing Shabbat with them on Friday nights. The girls light the candles and we sing the blessings together. My wife is not Jewish but is the world's best mom and has totally embraced these traditions and I look forward to the girls being Bat Mitzvah'd one day.