CBS News announced that longtime reporter, producer, and talent executive Maria Mercader died after contracting the coronavirus.
Mercader, 54, had tested positive for the COVID-19 virus prior to her death. In a statement mourning her on Sunday, CBS noted that Mercader had previously battled cancer and called her “an inspiration and a symbol of hope each time she returned to work after the latest medical setback threatened to end her life.”
CBS News President Susan Zirinsky added, “Even more than her talents as a journalist, we will miss her indomitable spirit. Maria was part of all of our lives.”
Several other CBS News reporters honored Mercader on Twitter. Longtime CBS anchor Dan Rather wrote, “A hard hit to the heart, news longtime colleague and friend Maria Mercader died from coronavirus. A paragon of grit and grace, she embodied the best of the @CBSNews mission. Millions of Americans learned of the world through her efforts. Now our world is less with her loss. RIP.”
A hard hit to the heart, news longtime colleague and friend Maria Mercader died from coronavirus. A paragon of grit and grace, she embodied the best of the @CBSNews mission. Millions of Americans learned of the world through her efforts. Now our world is less with her loss. RIP
— Dan Rather (@DanRather) March 29, 2020
CBS correspondent Manuel Bojorquez, a fellow cancer survivor, mourned Mercader’s death, tweeting, “We would joke that I’d survived one type of cancer and she’d survived all the others. And now we’ve lost her to this hideous virus. Maria Mercader, CBS News Talent Executive and Producer, was as inspiring and lovely as any human being could be. Deepest condolences to her family.”
We would joke that I’d survived one type of cancer and she’d survived all the others. And now we’ve lost her to this hideous virus.
Maria Mercader, CBS News Talent Executive and Producer, was as inspiring and lovely as any human being could be. Deepest condolences to her family. pic.twitter.com/GfcY83zGp6
— Manuel Bojorquez (@BojorquezCBS) March 29, 2020
The coronavirus has infected more than 135,000 U.S. citizens. As of Sunday, nearly 2,400 people in the United States have died after testing positive for the COVID-19 virus.
