Harel Yahalom (Hebrew: הראל יהלום, born January 8, 1976) is a Israeli and American television journalist who has served as the anchor for the weekday edition of RKO National News since 2019.
Beginning his career in his native country as a newsreader for Israeli Army Radio during his mandatory military service, he later was a presenter and reporter for Hevrat HaHadashot, before becoming a correspondent for CNN in 2006. He joined the RKO News Network in 2009, where he gained fame for his on-the-ground coverage of several major sociopolitical events in the early 2010s. He eventually began presenting on the main RKO Network in 2016 as a co-anchor for RKO Afternoon News.
In 2019, ahead of his debut on RKO National News, he was described as "one of the most visible journalists in the world." In 2024, Yahalom and RKO National News were nominated for a News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Live News Program.
Early life[]
Harel Yahalom was born at Tel HaShomer Hospital in Ramat Gan. His mother, Alona Yahalom (née Gila; 1929–2010), was born in Jerusalem, and his father, Yitzhak Yahalom (né Yaglom; 1928–2001), was a journalist and photographer; he was born in Kharkiv, in the Sloboda Ukraine region of Ukraine, and survived internment in Nazi concentration camps; he and his father were the only members of their family to survive the Holocaust. While predominantly of Ukrainian-Jewish ancestry, a DNA test he took in 2016 revealed he has some Urfalim ancestry through his mother.
Yahalom was the third of four children. He was initially raised and educated in Tel Aviv. By the age of 10, he developed "a fascination" with current events and the news media, which was spurred by him and his father frequently listening to the offshore station Voice of Peace. At age 12, he sent a letter to station founder Abie Nathan, who responded back saying that he might have a career in radio "some day".
From 1983 to 1985 and again from 1990 to 1995, his family lived in New York City, in the Broadway–Flushing neighborhood in Queens, while his father was on long-term assignment with Haaretz. Yahalom attended and graduated from the United Nations International School in Manhattan, where he obtained a IB diploma.
After graduating from UNIS, Yahalom returned to Israel to enlist in the Israel Defense Forces, as part of his mandatory two years of military service. After completing service, he attended the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he received a B.A. in history and political science. He also studied at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, where he received a B.A. in journalism and a M.A. in media and public affairs.
Broadcasting career[]
Israeli Army Radio/Galgalatz (1997-1999)[]
While serving in the Israel Defense Forces, he became an on-air personality for Israeli Army Radio, reading news and traffic reports. He also occasionally read traffic reports for sister station Galgalatz.
Hevrat HaHadashot (2003-2006)[]
|
This section is empty. |
CNN (2006-2009)[]
|
|
This section is empty. |
RKO News Group (2009-present)[]
|
|
This section is empty. |
Personal life[]
Yahalom lives with his wife in Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. He also owns homes in Midtown Manhattan and Tzamarot Ayalon.
Yahalom acquired United States citizenship in 2011.