The recent firing of ABC-7 news anchor Ken Rosato has raised many eyebrows.
This is a series of controversy and scandal in line for the anchor whose career of more than 2 decades with ABC came to an abrupt end.
While he has always kept his personal life private, a scandal surfaced in 2016 regarding his alleged use of Grindr, a gay dating app, where he boasted about his net worth and salary.
We also uncover his romantic life of more than 25 years with husband Chris Sobel, a CBS executive producer.
Rosato’s firing in 2023 was due to his use of a derogatory term towards his co-anchor, Shirleen Allicot.
The incident has left many wondering about the truth of the scandal and the future of Rosato’s career.
Why Was Ken Rosato Fired?
Ken Rosato, the star anchor for the local “Eyewitness News This Morning” on ABC7 in New York, faced termination following allegations of using a derogatory term to refer to his co-anchor, Shirleen Allicot.
According to sources, Rosato’s use of a four-letter word “c**t” towards Allicot was inadvertently captured by an open microphone, despite him being off the air at the time.
This incident led to his immediate dismissal from his position.
Although the network did not reveal why Ken was terminated initially, a trusted insider from ABC 7 confirmed that Rosato’s termination was indeed a consequence of his offensive language directed at his co-anchor, Shirleen Allicot.
On 12th May, Friday, the station’s general manager announced via email that Ken was “no longer with WABC” and thanked him for his service.
While Rosato did not speak on that matter, his rep stated Ken was not terminated for using a racial slur and the rumor is completely false and inaccurate.
The representative further emphasized that Rosato had an impressive tenure of 20 years at WABC, during which he consistently supported and advocated for equality for all individuals.
This isn’t a new thing as there has been a lot of controversies in journalism industry for few years now.
Who Replaced Ken Rosato?
Mike Marza has been selected as the anchor to replace Ken Rosato on local station WABC7. Mike Marza is a 41 year old who currently works as an anchor and reporter for ABC7NY.
After Ken’s departure, Mike is one of management’s top choice for replacement for Rosato’s sho “Eyewitness News This Morning.”
Ken Rosato Was Once A Priest!
Ken Rosato has a history of working as a priest at the Saint Anthony of Padua Catholic Community in Hollywood, Florida in early 2000s.
According to the chapel’s website, the church was not directly affiliated with Roman Catholicism but held respect for the religious institution and embraced similar ideologies.
He then moved to New York in 2003 and began career in journalism.
Ken, who has a height of 6 feet 2 inches, began his career as a program director/DJ for WVIP in 1985.
Rosato has since worked in various networks, including WBLI-FM, WLNY-TV, WFOR-TV, WNYW-TV.
Ken joined the ABC-7 network in 2003. Unfortunately, he was fired from his position in 2023.
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Ken Rosato Married Life, Husband Details
Ken Rosato is a proud gay man. However, he’s always kept this fact a secret, never giving any hint on social media.
Another secret about Ken is that he is already married to a handsome man named Chris Sobel.
Chris and Ken have been together for 25 years, since 1999.
On August 6, 2016, Ken and Chris married each other in a beautiful and intimate wedding ceremony.
The theme of the wedding was blue and beige/white.
The grooms wore a custom made beige suit with a white shirt and blue tie and pocket square.
Similarly, some of the dishes, like cupcakes and the theme decoration followed the blue and beige/white color theme as well.
Trouble At The Wedding
The ring did not fit!
Ken and Chris had been engaged for quite a while by the time of their wedding.
Chris lost couple pounds of weight since the engagement and the ring that Ken gave him began feeling loose.
So, Chris opted to wear a fake ring and keep his actual engagement ring safe at home so as to not lose it.
But as luck would have it, during the ring exchange ceremony, they hit a snag.
The ring stubbornly got stuck at Chris’s knuckle, refusing to budge an inch.
Determined not to let this issue ruin the joyful atmosphere of their wedding, Ken and Chris instead created a impromptu playful moment out of it.
They made multiple attempts, putting their muscles to work, and finally managed to wrangle the ring into place.
Who Is Ken Rosato’s Husband Chris Sobel?
Like Ken, his husband Chris comes from a journalism background as well.
Chris was born in 1980, in Huntington, New York and stayed in Huntington for 18 years. Today, Chris is 44 years old.
Chris Sobel completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Print Journalism and Political Science from the University of Miami between 1997 and 2001. He pursued his education during that time while building a foundation for his career in the media industry.
Currently working as an executive producer for WCBS, Chris Sobel has an extensive background in media production, with a career spanning several prestigious organizations.
From March 2000 to December 2000, he worked as a Web Producer for KNIGHTRIDDER.COM in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale Area.
Following that, from March 2000 to September 2000, he served as an Associate Producer for WFOR | CBS Miami in the same region.
Later, from February 2001 to October 2001, he worked as a Copy Editor at the Sun Sentinel Media Group in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale Area.
From October 2001 to June 2002, he was a Producer at WFOR | CBS Miami.
Chris then moved to WSVN-TV 7News, where he worked as a Senior Producer from July 2002 to December 2004 in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale Area.
Subsequently, he joined WCBS | CBS New York as a Producer and contributed his skills from December 2004 to May 2014, amounting to a total of 9 years and 6 months.
Lastly, he held the position of Executive Producer at Fox 5 (WNYW-TV New York) from May 2014 to June 2022, completing 8 years and 2 months of dedicated service.
Ken Boasted About Net Worth on Grindr
In 2016, a scandal came front that allegedly showed Ken’s secret life as a gay man.
Apparently, according to Grindr Hero, Ken was on the dating app called “Grindr,” famous amongst gay people and LGBTQ+ society in general.
However, the thing is that the scandal was not about Ken on Grindr but how he talked with one of the matches there.
Apparently, Ken came off as really sour and boasted about his massive $5 million salary and lavish home worth $2 million.
Now, do we think that this is a legitimate situation?
Not exactly. Although there are screenshots of the conversation, there’s no way to prove that it was Ken himself.
This might be an attempt to insinuate his amazing personality on TV. Or this might be true as well.
Heaven knows!
But this does raise an unanswered question. What was Rosato doing in that app on the year he got married to Chris.
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Enjoys Pride Parades
Ken is among a few of the journalists in ABC who attend the Pride Parade every year and report the whole thing from the field.
His fellow reporters are Kemberly Richardson, Lauren Glassberg, and Sam Champion.
Among the three, Sam, like Ken, is an out and proud gay man with a partner already.
Also, Ken takes the parade day very seriously.
Rosato even dresses up for the occasion along with his co-hosts.
For many years, viewers found it confusing about Ken’s personal life (Until Chris’s entry). And the fact that he called Lori Stokes his “work-wife” did not help as well.
Let’s talk about it.
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Ken Rosato’s Wife At Work – Lori Stokes
You heard it right. Ken Rosato’s wife is Lori Stokes. But don’t be jumping on the Cadillac and start ranting about how this isn’t true.
We know that, as well.
Ken refers to Lori Stokes, the 61 years old anchor, as his work wife.
Lori Stokes was previously married to Brian Thompson and had two children with him. However, the couple has since divorced.
Ken also asked Lori to become his Valentine on Valentine’s Day of 2015.
Safe to say, there’s nothing other than workplace jazz between Rosato and Stokes here. They’re just good friends.
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Ken Rosato Bio: Age, Height, Background
ABC journalist Ken Rosato was born on May 4, 1967, in New Rochelle, New York. He is 56 years old.
He was born to Daniel Rosato and Rosemarie Rosato.
Similarly, Ken grew up with his brother Steven Rosato.
Ken went to Regis High School and later graduated to continue studies.
Rosato went to join and graduate from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He received BFA in TV and Radio.
Rosato later did an MA in languages. That’s the reason he speaks Spanish, Italian so fluently.
Ken Rosato Salary and Net Worth
Before ABC fired Ken, he was earning an annual salary of over $5 million yearly which comes to a little over $400,000 monthly.
According to the Grindr scandal, Ken reportedly claimed those numbers.
This number comes from his Grindr scandal screenshots and isn’t confirmed yet.
Ken currently lives with his husband Chris Sobel, in his Caldwell, New Jersey home which has a valuation of over $2 million.
Similarly, Ken currently has a net worth of between $5 million to $7 million.
Ken Rosato Quick Facts
| Full Name | Ken Rosato |
| Nick Name | Ken |
| Birthday | May 4, 1967 |
| Age | 56 years old |
| Birth Place | New Rochelle, New York, USA |
| Horoscope | Taurus |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | Caucasian |
| Education | New York University’s Tisch School of Arts |
| Father’s Name | Daniel Rosato |
| Mother’s Name | Rosemarie Rosato |
| Siblings | Steven Rosato |
| Half-Siblings | |
| Height | 6 feet 2 inches (1.88m) |
| Weight | 95 kg (210 lbs.) |
| Shoe Size | 12 |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | Brown |
| Physique (Figure) | Fit |
| Sexuality | Gay |
| Married | Yes |
| Relationship Status | Married |
| Husband | Chris Sobel |
| Ex-Boyfriend | |
| Son | |
| Daughter | |
| Famous As | Former ABC7 Anchor |
| Net Worth | $5 Million to $7 Million |
| Social Media | @kenrosatoabc7 |
Ken Rosato is 56 years old. He was born on May 4, 1967, in New Rochelle, New York.
Ken currently anchors Eyewitness News This Morning on Channel 7 WABC-TV. He lives in his New Jersey home.
Ken Rosato in available on Facebook under the username @kenrosatoABC7.
Ken was allegedly fired from WABC because he called his fellow anchor Shirleen Allicot”c**t.”
What a j*rk of a Fa**ot ! ! !
Shame, firing uncalled for. She just maybe that. It’s his opinion. Unfortunately his mic was on. How many others feel same way? Good luck Ken. No longer watch eyewitness news.
Very fair to say that the comment Mr. Ken Rosato may have made was NOT RACIST. It had nothing to do with racism. He didn’t specify her race but rather a comment on her, NOT her race. It was his opinion. And after 20 plus years of faithful service to ABC , their decision was dead wrong to fire such a highly qualified news journalist. Wrong choice of words perhaps. But an apology may have been the only thing that was needed. Mr. Rosato you will do better by leaving ABC. I am not watching that newscast any longer.