Jon Burnett, longtime weatherman for CBS Pittsburgh, dies at 71

USA Today

21-02-2025

Jon Burnett, longtime weatherman for CBS Pittsburgh, dies at 71
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TV journalist Jon Burnett, a longtime weather forecaster for CBS Pittsburgh, has died. He was 71.
The Pittsburgh station, also known as KDKA-TV, confirmed Burnett's death in an obituary published Thursday. The date of Burnett's death was not disclosed.
"KDKA-TV is sad to report that Jon died of complications from suspected CTE at age 71, according to Dr. Joseph Malone, a UPMC Cognitive Neurologist," the obituary read. "He leaves behind an incredible legacy."
CTE stands for chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a progressive degenerative brain disease, according to Boston University's CTE Research Center, which has led research on the disease. The condition is caused by a history of repeated hits to the head and emerges months or even years after the head injuries were sustained, according to Boston University.
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Athletes in a number of contact sports, including football, hockey and boxing have been diagnosed with CTE over the years, per Boston University. It was first observed in boxers in the early 20th century and was known as punch drunk symptom. Official diagnoses can only be made posthumously, upon close examination of the brain.
Burnett played tackle football throughout childhood and later as a defensive end at the University of Tennessee. The news personality suffered two major concussions during his athletic career, according to a 2024 interview with KDKA. He reflected that he used his head to hit another player 30-40 times per game, resulting in hundreds of collisions over the years.
After a stint as a weather forecaster, Burnett joined KDKA-TV in 1982 when he was tapped to serve as co-host of the lifestyle talk show "Evening Magazine," per Burnett's obituary. "There's something that comes through that screen and you really can't fool it, and I think Jon was just a natural," Burnett's co-host Mary Robb Jackson told KDKA.
Burnett also went on to host "Pittsburgh 2Day" beginning in 1985. He returned to his meteorological roots in the early 1990s when he joined the KDKA weather team, a position he held for nearly 30 years, according to the CBS affiliate station.
"When you saw Jon on TV, you would immediately say, 'That's a guy I wouldn't mind having in my living room live and in person,'" former KDKA meteorologist Dennis Bowman told the station.
Burnett retired from journalism in 2019, according to KDKA. He went on to suffer major health issues such as memory loss and other neurological ailments, including his diagnosis of suspected CTE.
In 2024, the weatherman joined an ongoing study by the National Sports Brain Bank at the University of Pittsburgh, which required an agreement to posthumously donate his brain, according to KDKA. Utilizing a donation registry of former contact sport participants, the National Sports Brain Bank's programming focuses on research and treatment of brain disorders and CTE.
"If I can help anybody on this road, who is on this road or will be on this road in the years ahead, I feel better about being able to do that," Burnett told KDKA-TV in a 2024 interview.
Burnett is survived by his wife Debbie and his adult children, Samantha and Eric.
Contributing: Orlando Mayorquin, USA TODAY