Kessler was hired by
WWOR-TV in 1976 as a
reporter and became co-anchor of "News at Noon," with anchorman
Tom Dunn later that year. She also co-anchored the station's "News 9 PrimeTime," which was an 8 PM newscast, from 1983-1987. When WWOR-TV switched to a 10 PM newscast in late 1987, Kessler became solo anchor of the "News at Noon." She also co-hosted "9 Broadcast Plaza," a 3-hour live daily news/chat program from 1989–1991, joined by future
Today Show co-host
Matt Lauer. She continued as anchor of "News at Noon" until the newscast was cancelled and then became a weekend news anchor and reporter for "News at Ten." Kessler won an
Emmy Award for anchoring WWOR-TV's coverage of the
1993 World Trade Center bombing. In 1994, Kessler was fired by WWOR. She subsequently sued the television station for
religious discrimination, among other charges. Kessler, who is an
Orthodox Jewish woman, claimed that she was forced to work on Saturdays, which is forbidden by the Jewish religion. She was later able to successfully sue the station for $7.3 million. Kessler was among the first journalists to interview
John Lennon when he received a green card after years of fighting U.S. government efforts to deport him. She has been a resident of
Englewood, New Jersey for more than 20 years. ==References==