7 News

Joanne Desmond
News Presenter - Regional Queensland

Joanne Desmond joined the Seven Network in January 2004 as co-anchor for Seven Queensland’s news services in Cairns and Townsville.

No stranger to the newsroom, Joanne has enjoyed a career spanning 18 years in newspapers, radio and television journalism.

Her love affair with the media began at school when Jo wrote regular articles for her local newspaper and hosted her own radio show at a community radio station.

The hard work paid off when Jo was offered a cadetship straight from school with a small regional newspaper on the mid north coast of New South Wales.

After two years, doing the local rounds and often doubling as the newspaper photographer, Joanne moved on to a larger newspaper on the Central Coast.

Her time on the coast was short lived however, as within six months she was offered a position at the Seven-affiliated Prime Television, running its Taree news bureau on the Mid North Coast.

Within a couple of years, newer pastures beckoned and Joanne joined a large newsroom at Townsville in North Queensland.

She spent 12 months as an on-the-road reporter before being offered the plum role of news presenter.

Joanne became a familiar face to the people of North Queensland and outback Australia, with some of her life played out on screen as she read the local news.

Viewers watched as she became engaged, married her husband John, and became pregnant with her three boys Joshua, now 7, Kai, 5 and son Flynn who was born early in 2005.

After leaving the newsroom following the axing of Channel Ten’s local news in 2001, Joanne returned to the screen when Channel 7 launched it’s local news services for Cairns and Townsville in early 2004.

“The people of north and far north Queensland really deserve a quality news service to keep them informed. I am proud to be with the Seven Network and know that viewers will be pleased with what we produce.

“Returning to news, really feels like I’m coming home”.