Trey Yingst isn’t your typical TV personality, and he wouldn’t want to be. At just 32, the Pennsylvania-born journalist has become one of the most recognizable foreign correspondents on American television, known for fearless reporting from some of the world’s most volatile conflict zones.
Growing up in Hershey, Pennsylvania, Yingst graduated magna cum laude from American University with a degree in broadcast journalism. While many students focused on textbooks, Yingst was already chasing stories on the ground, co-founding News2Share and documenting civil unrest from Ferguson to Ukraine. By age 24, he stood behind the White House press podium, and soon after, he was reporting nearly full-time from warzones.
Behind the helmet and flak jacket, however, is a quieter, deeply personal story. In 2022, he faced one of his hardest moments: losing his mother, Debbie Ann Lee Yingst, on Thanksgiving after a long illness. A social worker and “an incredible human,” Debbie shaped her son’s compassion. In a heartfelt Instagram tribute, Yingst encouraged kindness in her memory — a message that mirrors his reporting in grief-stricken villages, bomb shelters, and ICU wards.
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