Wiki Biography / Profile Background
Introduction :
- Debra Alfarone is a media coach, reporter, and news anchor originally from Hicksville, New York.
- A charismatic and confident woman, Alfarone is not afraid of taking on new challenges in her life and is always ready to embark on whatever exciting business adventure comes her way.
Personal Life, Parents and Family Details :
- Debra was born and raised in the small town of Hicksville, New York. She spent most of her young life living in Manhattan.
- When she was 13 years old, Debra’s parents split up.
- As a young adult, Debra spent many years dating men who always ended up disappointing and breaking her heart. One of them was much older and even snorted cocaine! Eventually, Debra decided to start dating men who were kind but not as crazy as her exes, and in no time, she met her future husband, Josh Silverman.
- The pair took it a bit slow at first, but by 2017, they were walking down the aisle. Their dog Murray was their ring bearer.
- Josh and Debra currently live in Washington, D.C., with their two dogs, Baxter and Murray. Both are rescue dogs that they adopted from a local shelter.
- Silverman is currently self-employed and runs a test preparation company called Edge Education.
Education : Qualifications, High School & College Info
- Debra dropped out of high school before graduating and spent some time doing odd jobs here and there before returning to obtain her GED.
- After getting a GED, she attended the State University of New York at Stony Brook, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology.
- Alfarone was so embarrassed by the label of being a high school dropout that she did not tell many people until she gave a TEDx Talk in 2015.
Career, Job, Salary and Net Worth :
- From 1997 to 2000, Debra worked at the World Trade Center on the 64th floor. She considers it an important, life-changing job where she met some of her best friends.
- A few months later, Debra started working with the Wall Street-based credit card organization American Express. On September 11, 2001, after witnessing the infamous 9/11 terror attacks, she decided to quit her job and pursue a career in television.
- Debra had three primary reasons for switching careers – She realized that if she died, she did not want to die without ever having truly lived. Secondly, as the economy tanked, she was given a buyout at American Express. Lastly, she recognized how important it was to communicate vital stories and disseminate knowledge through TV journalism.
- After receiving some media training, Debra joined News 12 Connecticut as a fill-in anchor and general assignment reporter in November 2004.
- Debra spent almost four years working with the company before leaving to join NBC Connecticut as a general assignment reporter in 2008.
- For the next decade, Debra focused on her work as a reporter and anchor and switched jobs multiple times to work with news stations such as WPIX-TV (May 2010 – Oct 2012) and WUSA-TV (Oct 2012 – Oct 2018).
- In 2018, she briefly took time away from television and became a media trainer, on-camera confidence coach, and keynote speaker for her own personal brand, Debra Alfarone Media.
- After receiving success working with several social media entrepreneurs and influencers, Debra decided to keep growing her brand. Today, she works with several influencers, authors, reporters, and new-age companies such as Teachable, BuzzFeed, and Fiverr.
- In addition to running her own personal brand, Alfarone is also a freelance TV News Correspondent for CBS News.
Interesting Facts, Height and Trivia :
- When she is not working, Debra loves to volunteer for a charity called God’s Love We Deliver, which makes and delivers cooked meals to underprivileged people.
- She is also the author of a book titled Sh*t I Wish I Knew In My Twenties.
- During the 9/11 attacks, Debra lost a few friends and acquaintances. Luckily, her close friends survived but saw horrific scenes while escaping.
- For five years, from Jan 2007 to Oct 2012, Alfarone taught the course “Introduction to Reporting” at Mediabistro.
Wow,
We have just seen you on the news reporting on 4/11/22. I had never seen you before until then…reading your bio hit me hard on what you went through. Just never read an anchor’s bio quite like that. For everything you went through, you have been truly blessed. You and your husband and two dogs enjoy your togetherness
Wow,
We have just seen you on the news reporting on 4/11/22. I had never seen you before until then…reading your bio hit me hard on what you went through. Just never read an anchor’s bio quite like that. For everything you went through, you have been truly blessed. You and your husband and two dogs enjoy your togetherness