Pablo Guzmán

 Pablo Guzmán is a reporter for CBS 2. He was born in Spanish Harlem, and raised in the South Bronx. He joined WCBS-TV from WNBC, where he spent three years. Prior to WNBC, Guzmán spent nine years as reporter for Metromedia’s WNEW in New York (later Fox’s WNYW).

Guzmán has covered a wide range of stories. He has lived in Mexico; spent three months in the People’s Republic of China when Mao was still alive; reported from places as varied as Kentucky, Costa Rica, Ohio, Cuba, and Texas. A series of investigative reports on deaths due to negligent emergency room care prompted new State regulations in New York on staffing in the ER. Pablo was the first to report that Islamic jihadists were behind the first World Trade Center bombing in 1993; first to report the capture of mastermind Ramzi Yousef; first to report that the prime suspect in the Oklahoma City bombing was a white separatist and not a Middle Eastern jihadist. In the world of pop culture, and drawing from his background as a writer and radio DJ and talk show host, Guzmán has scored exclusive interviews with figures such as Sting, Carlos Santana, John Fogerty, Spike Lee, and Robert DeNiro. His trademark style incorporates humor with cutting edge stories.

Guzmán has written for various publications, including The Village Voice, Essence, Rolling Stone, Musician, Downbeat, Billboard, and the New York Daily News. He also hosted radio talk shows on WMCA and WLIB, and deejayed at WBLS.

Guzmán won an Emmy award for his report on a police officer murder and was cited in a poll in the New York Daily News as one of the city’s three most popular television reporters. He also earned an award from the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association for a story on a controversial police shooting in Washington Heights that helped vindicate the officer. In addition, Guzmán served as an honorary member on the Selection Committee for the first two years of the Latin music category of the Grammy Awards; recognition for his efforts to encourage the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to create that category.

Guzmán graduated from the Bronx High School of Science. After a year at the first two semesters of the brand new State University at Old Westbury on Long Island (so new they were still building the campus, and the 81students were housed on Oyster Bay), he became a founder and co-leader of the Young Lords Party, a radical political organization that fought for Puerto Rican and Latino rights. “During the next six years, Guzman was one of the group’s main spokespersons; produced and hosted a twice-weekly show for the Lords on WBAI; edited their weekly newspaper, Palante; and helped the organization spread to Philadelphia, Newark, Bridgeport, and Puerto Rico, among other places.”

Toward the end of the Vietnam War, Pablo, who had refused to report for the draft physical in an act of civil disobedience, was imprisoned for nine months of a two-year sentence. This occurred at a time when others with a similar background of not having any other arrests were getting community service or suspended sentences. The FBI said it was because he was in the Young Lords.

Ironically, when Pablo became a reporter, some of his best contacts were those FBI agents and NYPD personnel, who now had moved up in the ranks. In fact, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly — never a source, but the two share a mutual respect — tried to arrest Pablo in his Young Lords days when Kelly was a Sgt. out of the 23rd Precinct. “You were faster and skinnier then,” Kelly said. Pablo once asked one of the officers why they were now talking to him, and was told, “Because we realize now that what you did was for your community. And besides, we know you. You’re not one of these twinkies they drop in from outta town.”

Pablo is married to the former Debbie Corley. They have a daughter, Angela, and a son, Daniel.