Former KDKA talk show host and weather forecaster Jon Burnett has passed away at the age of 71 due to complications of suspected CTE.

Burnett decided to go public with his disease in February of 2024, “because my disease is so obvious, I couldn’t hide it anymore. I could not broadcast it to the world that there’s something wrong with me.” Burnett decided to have his brain donated to the National Sports Brain Bank, which does research on CTE through brains donated to science.

Burnett was first hired by the Pittsburgh news station KDKA-TV in 1982 as the new co-host of the Evening Magazine.

“We traveled around the world together. Jon used to say we take people around the world and around the corner,” said Evening Magazine co-host Liz Miles.

Burnett also began co-hosting Pittsburgh 2Day in 1985.

“It was just like having your brother right there,” said Pittsburgh 2Day co-host Patrice King Brown. I mean somebody you could really tease, somebody who would tease you mercilessly as well as the whole staff, he did that. I never had so much fun as I did the years I worked with Jon Burnett.”

Burnett returned to his roots as a weather forecaster at KDKA in the early 90s when both Pittsburgh 2Day and Evening Magazine ended.

“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,” said former KDKA meteorologist Dennis Bowman. For nearly 30 years, Jon was a trusted member of the KDKA team.

Burnett retired in 2019. He dealt with some serious health issues including neurological problems and memory loss. He was eventually diagnosed with suspected CTE by his doctors. Burnett played football as a young child and then collegiate football at the University of Tennessee, which likely caused his diagnosis.

Former KDKA personality remembered Jon by stating, “You never know what’s gonna happen in life and Jon lived it to the fullest.”