Lidia Curanaj is an American broadcast journalist who currently works as a news anchor at Newsmax. She built her career at New York outlets including Fox 5 (WNYW), RNN-TV, DeSales Media Group, and 77 WABC Radio before joining Newsmax in January 2023. She is widely described as the first Albanian-American broadcast journalist in the United States. This article separates what is reliably documented about her career and a well-known workplace lawsuit from claims about her personal life that cannot be responsibly confirmed.
Curanaj draws search interest for two main reasons. First, her steady rise through New York television and radio newsrooms over roughly two decades. Second, a 2016 discrimination lawsuit she filed against Fox’s parent company that became part of the broader Roger Ailes harassment story. Both threads are grounded in real reporting from established outlets.
This article relies on court-related reporting from outlets like Newsweek, Mediaite, and Fortune, plus a law-firm case summary, for the lawsuit details. For personal details such as net worth, height, or marital status, publicly available reliable sourcing is thin or absent, and this article says so directly rather than repeating unverified figures found on other sites.
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Lidia Curanaj Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
| Full Name (legal) | Reported in federal court filings as Lidija Ujkic |
| Professional Name | Lidia Curanaj |
| Birthplace | The Bronx, New York (widely reported, not independently confirmed) |
| Ethnicity | Albanian-American |
| Profession | Broadcast journalist, news anchor |
| Current Employer | Newsmax (since January 2023) |
| Prior Employers | Fox 5 / WNYW, RNN-TV, DeSales Media Group, 77 WABC Radio |
| Known For | Career achievement plus a 2016 Fox discrimination lawsuit |
| Date of Birth / Age | Not independently verified in reliable public sources |
| Net Worth | Not independently verified in reliable public sources |
| Marital Status | Not independently verified in reliable public sources |
Who Is Lidia Curanaj?
Curanaj is a New York-based journalist with roughly two decades in local and national broadcasting. Multiple career profiles describe her as raised in the Bronx to Albanian immigrant parents, one of five children whose parents emphasized education and hard work.
She has been described in industry coverage as the first Albanian-American to enter broadcast reporting in the United States, a distinction that recurs across profiles of her career.
Her reported educational background includes graduating from Cardinal Spellman High School before attending Iona College on a scholarship to study mass communication and media studies, graduating summa cum laude. That schooling detail comes from a single industry biography and has not been cross-checked against a second independent source, so it is treated here as reported rather than fully confirmed.
Lidia Curanaj Real Name and Identity
Federal court reporting on her 2016 lawsuit identifies her legal name differently from her on-air name. Newsweek’s coverage of the case states that the discrimination lawsuit was filed by Lidia Curanaj, whose legal name is Lidija Ujkic.
A law firm summary of related Fox News litigation also refers to her client as Lidija Curanaj in a lawsuit against Twenty-First Century Fox, Fox Entertainment Group, Fox Television Stations, and Fox5 News Director Bryon Harmon.
Some content sites claim a specific “maiden name” for her (spellings vary between sites and contradict each other). None of those claims trace back to a primary source, so this article does not present any single maiden-name spelling as confirmed.
Lidia Curanaj Career Timeline
Curanaj’s career moved through several New York newsrooms before her national role at Newsmax.
- General assignment reporter, Fox 5 / WNYW — joined 2011, covered stories including Hurricane Sandy
- News anchor, RNN Television
- News anchor, DeSales Media Group
- News reporter and later news director, 77 WABC 770 AM — joined March 2021
- National news anchor, Newsmax Media — joined January 2023
| Year | Career Stage | Development |
| 2011 | Fox 5 (WNYW) | Joined as general assignment reporter; covered Hurricane Sandy |
| 2016 | Fox 5 (WNYW) | Filed federal discrimination lawsuit against 21st Century Fox |
| 2021 | 77 WABC Radio | Joined as news reporter, later became news director |
| Jan 2023 | Newsmax Media | Announced move from WABC Radio to a national anchor role |
Prior industry profiles also describe a stint as a coordinating producer at CBS News, working alongside figures including Ed Bradley, Bob Schieffer, and Dan Rather, though this credit appears on secondary profile sites rather than a primary CBS source, so it is best treated as reported rather than fully confirmed.
The Fox News Discrimination Lawsuit
This is the most independently documented chapter of Curanaj’s public record, covered by Newsweek, Mediaite, Fortune, and a law-firm case summary.
In December 2016, Curanaj filed a federal lawsuit alleging that top-down harassment at Fox had spread across departments and affected women employees, and that Fox 5’s news director used discriminatory language reflecting bias against women, pregnant employees, older workers, people of Balkan descent, and people with illnesses.
The suit described an earlier 2011 encounter with then-Fox News chairman Roger Ailes. According to Newsweek’s reporting, Ailes met Curanaj at a 2011 dinner, later interviewed her privately, told her it was important for female talent to “look good from head to toe,” and asked her to stand and turn around for him. The suit further alleged that Ailes contacted a man Curanaj had previously dated to ask whether she would be sexually available, and that she was turned down for the Fox News job after he indicated she likely would not.
The complaint did not name Ailes or Fox News itself as a defendant. Instead, it targeted her actual employer, Fox-owned station WNYW, alleging gender, age, race, and pregnancy discrimination. Court filings summarized by her law firm state that after she disclosed her pregnancy she was removed from her regular schedule, and that Fox denied her request for a consistent schedule after her expected maternity leave, followed by further retaliation once the discrimination complaint was raised.
The lawsuit also alleged that a Fox 5 news director told Curanaj she was not being promoted to anchor because she was “not attractive enough.”
Fox Television Stations disputed the claims at the time. A spokesperson said in a statement that the company did not believe the claims had merit and intended to defend the case vigorously.
Evidence Check
Confirmed: A federal discrimination lawsuit naming Fox-owned WNYW was filed in December 2016, reported by multiple independent outlets.
Source: Newsweek, Mediaite, Fortune, Wigdor LLP case summary.
What It Shows: Curanaj alleged pregnancy, gender, age, race, and ethnicity-based discrimination, plus an earlier uncomfortable encounter with Roger Ailes during a 2011 job interview process.
What Remains Unclear: Public reporting on the case’s final resolution is limited. One secondhand source states she received a portion of a broader $10 million Fox settlement pool, but this article treats that figure as reported rather than independently confirmed, since it was not traced to a primary settlement document.
Lidia Curanaj Newsmax Role and Current Status
Curanaj has anchored at Newsmax since January 2023, after roughly four years in radio news leadership at WABC. Coverage of her current role states that at Newsmax she delivers political news coverage, public policy updates, election analysis, and interview segments, with an on-screen presence often described as composed, direct, and professional.
Before that move, industry profiles describe her tenure at WABC in more detail: she joined the WABC News team in March 2021 after working as a news reporter at DeSales Media Group, having earlier served as a news anchor at RNN Television.
As of this writing, no newer verified development beyond her ongoing Newsmax anchor role was found in reliable sources reviewed for this article.
Lidia Curanaj Emmy Awards
Several career profiles describe Curanaj as a two-time Emmy Award winner, including one industry biography stating she is the winner of two Emmy awards. Specific award categories, years, and the presenting chapter were not independently verified through an awards-organization record during this research, so this detail is best treated as widely reported rather than independently confirmed.
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Age, Height, and Net Worth: What’s Actually Known
Search interest in Curanaj’s age, height, and net worth is high, but reliable public documentation of these details is limited. Several low-authority content sites publish specific birth dates, ages, heights, net worth figures, and even a “husband” and “wedding” story for her — but those accounts contradict each other and, in the case of wedding details, describe entirely different careers, locations, and spouses that do not match her actual, documented profession as a journalist.
Because of that contradiction, this article does not repeat any of those figures as fact.
| Category | Status |
| Date of Birth | Not reliably confirmed in available public sources |
| Age | Not reliably confirmed in available public sources |
| Height | Not reliably confirmed in available public sources |
| Net Worth | Not reliably confirmed in available public sources |
| Salary | Not reliably confirmed in available public sources |
| Husband / Marital Status | Not reliably confirmed in available public sources; conflicting and apparently fabricated accounts exist online and should not be treated as fact |
What Happened to Lidia Curanaj?
This search phrase most often points to two things: her career move from local New York news to a national Newsmax role, and the 2016 Fox discrimination lawsuit described above. There is no indication in reliable sources that anything else notable happened to her career trajectory — she moved from Fox 5, to RNN, to DeSales Media, to WABC Radio leadership, and then to a national Newsmax anchor chair.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lidia Curanaj still on Newsmax?
Yes. Available reporting indicates she has anchored at Newsmax since joining in January 2023, with no reliable reports of her departing since.
What is Lidia Curanaj’s real name?
Federal court reporting on her 2016 lawsuit lists her legal name as Lidija Ujkic, distinct from her on-air name, Lidia Curanaj.
What happened to Lidia Curanaj at Fox News?
She filed a 2016 federal discrimination lawsuit against Fox’s parent company, alleging pregnancy, gender, age, and ethnicity-based discrimination at Fox 5, plus an uncomfortable 2011 interview encounter involving Roger Ailes.
Is Lidia Curanaj Albanian?
Yes. Multiple profiles describe her as Albanian-American, raised in the Bronx by Albanian immigrant parents, and she is often cited as the first Albanian-American broadcast journalist in the U.S.
What is Lidia Curanaj’s net worth?
No reliable, independently sourced net worth figure could be confirmed. Figures circulating online are not traceable to a verifiable source and should be treated with caution.
Is Lidia Curanaj married?
Public, verifiable information about her marital status was not found. Some online “wedding” stories about a person named Lidia Curanaj describe a completely different person (a fashion designer or singer), not the journalist covered in this article, and should not be relied on.
Where did Lidia Curanaj work before Newsmax?
She worked at Fox 5 (WNYW) as a reporter, then RNN-TV, DeSales Media Group, and 77 WABC Radio, where she became news director before joining Newsmax.
Did Lidia Curanaj win any awards?
She is widely described in industry profiles as a two-time Emmy Award winner, though specific award details were not independently verified for this article.
Conclusion
Lidia Curanaj’s documented career runs from a Fox 5 general assignment reporter in 2011 to a national Newsmax anchor today, with a well-reported detour through a 2016 federal discrimination lawsuit tied to the broader Roger Ailes scandal. That lawsuit, and her steady climb through New York’s television and radio newsrooms, make up the reliably sourced core of her public story.
Beyond that, much of what circulates online about her age, height, net worth, and marital status does not trace back to a verifiable source, and some of it appears to describe an entirely different person. Readers searching for those specifics should treat unsourced figures with skepticism until a primary source confirms them.