Jim DeFede
Jim DeFede joined CBS4 News in January 2006, providing regular commentary on the evening news. He now serves as an investigative reporter and a member of the CBS4 News I-Team.
Jim DeFede was born in Brooklyn, New York on August 11, 1962. Although his family remains in the same rent-controlled apartment building where he was raised, DeFede left Brooklyn when he was 19 to attend Colorado State University. Much to his mother’s continuing disappointment, however, DeFede never graduated from college.
In 1986, DeFede landed his first job in journalism as a night cops reporter for The Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington.
In 1991, he accepted an offer to become a staff writer with the weekly newspaper Miami New Times, where he won numerous awards during his eleven year tenure with the paper.
Between 2002 and 2005, DeFede was a metro columnist for The Miami Herald.
DeFede was a regular contributing writer for Tina Brown’s Talk magazine and his work has also appeared in Radar, The New Republic, Newsday, Mother Jones, The (London) Independent, Miami Monthly, Key West Magazine and Loft.
His first book, “The Day The World Came To Town: 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland,” was published in 2002 by HarperCollins and was recognized with a 2003 Christopher Award for its ability to “affirm the highest values of the human spirit.”
Greed, Crime and Murder For Hire In The Keys
In December, retired Coast Guard commander Dennis Zecca was arrested by federal agents in Marathon. Accused of conspiring to buy 10 kilos of cocaine, he was also charged with hiring a hitman to kill one of the town’s biggest realtors.
Facing South Florida: Booker T. Washington High School
We devote the entire half-hour of this week’s Facing South Florida with Jim DeFede to what life is like for students at Booker T. Washington High School, both at school and away from school. The format is roundtable with Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, as well as Booker T’s principal, and one of its teachers.
Former Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina Charged With Tax Evasion
Former Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina has been charged with federal tax evasion and is expected to surrender in federal court Friday morning.
Exclusive: Early Morning Drug Raid Nets Multiple Arrests
Hours before the sun rose, members of Miami Dade’s gang task force gathered in a parking lot near the county’s North Side station, plotting a raid they hoped would mark the end of a violent gang known as New Money Boys.
Report Raises Concern About Glock Handguns
A never before released report by the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office raises questions about the reliability of the Glock semi-automatic handgun used by its deputies.
Facing South Florida: The Future of the FCAT
Miami-Dade school board member Raquel Regalado discusses the ongoing controversy of “teaching to the test” and the curriculum set to soon replace the FCAT.
Facing South Florida: Bridge on the Brink
Should the Bear Cut Bridge, which connects Key Biscayne to the mainland, be repaired or replaced? We discuss the controversy surrounding that question.
Booker T. Washington HS Students Live With Learning In A War Zone
Long before the sun rises, Miami’s Booker T. High School slowly starts to come to life. In the darkness, security guards open gates and unlock fences as the first students lumber in before 6 am. For some the breakfast they’ll receive may be the first thing they’ve had to eat since their school lunch the day before.
Exclusive: 911 Dispatcher At Center Of Death Investigation Has Brain Tumor
“I’m not a monster who sat behind the radio and intentionally let somebody else die,” declared Damian Janee, the Miami Beach 911 dispatcher at the center of the controversial incident last March in which it took more than 30 minutes for paramedics to arrive at a Venetian Island home.
Controversial Call During HS Football Game Left Athlete’s Future In Doubt
On a recent Friday afternoon, a group of high school coaches and athletic directors gathered to decide the fate of Jonathan Brown, a Miami Coral Park High School junior.
CBS Miami Sections
Shopping Around South Florida
Best Shopping Centers & Malls
From Sawgrass Mills to the Falls, these are your best bets for malls.
Best South Florida Thrift Stores
Malls too expensive? Check out the bargains and be thrifty.
