Sheinelle Jones was born in Philadelphia’s Fairmount neighborhood and grew up in Kansas before eventually returning to hometown for several years back in 2005, writes Victor Fiorillo for Philadelphia Magazine.
Jones, 47, was born to college sweethearts who moved to Philadelphia shortly after graduating. After they divorced, the young Sheinelle moved to her mother’s native Wichita, and spent summers with her dad in Philadelphia.
One day, she saw a woman reporter on TV and admired her, immediately telling her grandmother, “I want to be her!”
That eventually prompted her to pursue journalism at Northwestern University after already having done some internships in media. She did several more internships during college.
“When it came time to graduate, I think I sent out 44 VHS tapes of myself to news stations all over the place and just waited for a callback. Thank God it all worked out,” said Jones.
After years working gigs throughout the Midwest and South, she returned to Philly to join Good Day Philadelphia in 2005, co-hosting alongside Mike Jerrick.
In 2014, Jones departing the show and city to join the Today show in New York. She is now the co-host of the show’s fourth hour.
“News is embedded in me. It’s part of my DNA,” said Jones.
Read more about Sheinelle Jones’ life, career, and journey in Philadelphia Magazine.
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