Erika Tarantal

Emmy Award winning journalist Erika Tarantal joined WCVB Channel 5 as an anchor and reporter for NewsCenter 5 in February 2014. Erika co-anchors WCVB’s NewsCenter 5 at 5PM and 5:30PM.

In addition, Erika is a contributing reporter for WCVB’s iconic local news magazine, Chronicle, and champions WCVB’s recurring “5 For Good” stories, the station’s ongoing effort to highlight people helping others in communities across Massachusetts. In 2017, Erika’s “5 for Good” story entitled “Food Truck Fighting Hunger” was awarded a prestigious national Gracie Award by The Alliance for Women in Media (AWM). The story profiled a local couple whose food truck, Daniel’s Table, serves up thousands of meals each week using proceeds from the cafe that they own in order to stamp out hunger in their hometown.

Erika came to WCVB from News 4 New York, NBC’s flagship station in New York City, where she anchored the weekend newscast and also was a primary fill-in co-anchor for WNBC’s weekday morning newscast, “Today in New York.” She has reported on major stories ranging from the death of Pope John Paul II and the election of Pope Benedict to hours of coverage during Superstorm Sandy and the tragic shootings in Newtown, CT.

Erika joined News 4 New York as a general assignment reporter in December 2007. Prior to joining NBC4, Erika served as a general assignment reporter at WVIT-TV in Hartford, CT beginning in October 2005. Prior to that, Erika rose through the ranks at News 12 in the Bronx where she started as a general assignment reporter before being promoted to anchor of the station’s weekday morning newscast. Erika also served as a production assistant at WHDH-TV in Boston. Before beginning her career in broadcasting, Erika was a paralegal for the Office of the Attorney General in Boston.

Erika graduated from Connecticut College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in government.