John Quinones on 20/20

		Wednesday, Aug 20, 2008 09:37:46 AM

	20/20

	Barbara Walters

	Tom Jarriel

	John Stossel

	John Quinones

	Elizabeth Vargas

	Dr. Nancy Snyderman, M.D.

	Former co-host Hugh Downs

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John Quinones
Correspondent for 20/20

John Quinones is a correspondent for ABC News "20/20." He had previously been a correspondent for "PrimeTime Live," since November, 1991. In addition to his duties as a correspondent, Mr. Quinones serves as a host of "20/20 Downtown," covering unique stories for the newsmagazine, which premiered in October, 1999.

In September, 1999, Mr. Quinones anchored and reported a critically acclaimed ABC News special entitled "Latin Beat," focusing on the wave of Latin talent sweeping the U.S., the impact of the recent population explosion and how it will affect not only bicultural Americans but the nation as a whole. Recognized for his outstanding journalistic contributions for his work on "Latin Beat," Mr. Quinones was recently awarded an ALMA Award from the National Council of La Raza.

Mr. Quinones also contributed reports to ABC News' unprecedented 24-hour, live, global Millennium broadcast which won the George Foster Peabody Award for 1999.

His reports for "20/20" have included an in-depth look at the unprecedented lawsuit against the Cuban government by a woman who claimed she unknowingly married a spy; an exclusive interview with a Florida teenager who brutally killed her adoptive mother, claiming insanity; a look at sex abuse in schools, uncovering the story of an educator who continued to teach and allegedly molest students in different school districts, despite a history of misconduct; and the story of a controversial small-town apostle whom some consider a disciple of God -- while others say he is a deceiver of the masses.

Mr. Quinones was recently honored with a Gabriel Award for his poignant report that followed a young man to Colombia, as he made an emotional journey to reunite with his birth mother after two decades. Mr. Quinones' investigation into the controversial police interrogation tactics used in the case of 13-year-old Anthony Harris led, in part, to new developments in the case. Harris, convicted of murdering his five-year-old neighbor, was recently freed from prison, as information uncovered in Quinones' report may have led to new questions about methods used by Ohio police to obtain the child's confession.

John Quinones covered the Albanian refugee crisis for a "20/20" one-hour special on Macedonia and Albania. Other stories included a look at women in polygamous marriages in Utah, and an inspiring story about a young boy who was confined to a cage as a child for over two years and his remarkable recovery with his adoptive parents.

Mr. Quinones has won six national Emmy Awards for his "PrimeTime Live," "Burning Questions" and "20/20" work. He was awarded an Emmy for his coverage of the Congo's virgin rainforest, which also won the Ark Trust Wildlife Award. He has also been honored with a World Hunger Media Award and a Citation from the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards for "To Save the Children," his 1990 report on the homeless children of Bogota. And he received a 1990 Emmy Award for "Window in the Past," his look at the Yanomamo Indians.

Mr. Quinones joined ABC News in June, 1982, as a general assignment correspondent based in Miami, providing reports for "World News Tonight With Peter Jennings" and other ABC News broadcasts. He was one of the few American journalists reporting from Panama City during the U.S. invasion in December, 1989.

Mr. Quinones has reported on a wide range of stories originating from Central America, including the political and economic turmoil in Argentina and civil war in El Salvador. He also covered such stories as the explosion aboard the USS Iowa, the execution of serial killer Ted Bundy and the debate over the availability of guns in Florida.

In 1988 Mr. Quinones filed over 50 reports from Panama, detailing the country's turmoil and U.S. efforts to oust Manuel Noriega. In January, 1986, he covered the space shuttle Challenger disaster from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

In April, 1990, Mr. Quinones received a National Emmy Award for his work on the documentary, "Burning Questions -- The Poisoning of America," which aired on the ABC Television Network in September, 1988.

Prior to joining ABC News, Mr. Quinones was a reporter with WBBM-TV in Chicago, where he covered a variety of stories on local, national and international issues, including a report on the Haitian boat people in 1982 and the Cuban boat lift in 1980. Mr. Quinones won two Emmy Awards for his 1980 reporting on the plight of illegal aliens from Mexico.

From 1975 to 1978 Mr. Quinones was a news editor at KTRH-Radio in Houston, Texas. During that period he also was an anchor-reporter for KPRC-TV.

Mr. Quinones received a Bachelor of Arts degree in speech communications from St. Mary's University, San Antonio, Texas. He received a Master's degree from the Columbia School of Journalism.

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