By Rasheed Sobowale

Veteran journalist Cokie Roberts, who joined an upstart NPR in 1978 and left an indelible imprint on the growing network with her coverage of Washington politics before later going to ABC News, has died at the age of 75.

Nina Totenberg, Linda Wertheimer and Cokie Roberts, photographed around 1979, were among the prominent female voices on NPR in its early years. PHOTO: NPR

The family statement reported that Roberts died Tuesday because of complications from breast cancer, NPR reported.

“We will miss Cokie beyond measure, both for her contributions and for her love and kindness,” Roberts’ family said in a statement on Tuesday.

“Roberts passed away on Tuesday “due to complications from breast cancer,” the family’s statement said.

She was a winner of three Emmys and a legend and trailblazer in broadcasting, has died at the age of 75, ABC News announced.

Roberts worked in television, public radio and publishing for over 40 years. She began her tenure at ABC as a contributor for “This Week with David Brinkley” and later became ABC’s chief congressional analyst.

“She will be dearly missed. Cokie’s kindness, generosity, sharp intellect and thoughtful take on the big issues of the day made ABC a better place and all of us better journalists,” ABC News president James Goldston said in a statement.

Roberts began her career in the 1960s at WNEW and KNBC-TV. She joined CBS News in 1974 and then NPR in 1978, for which she covered Capitol Hill and reported on the Panama Canal Treaty.

She also served as a correspondent for “The MacNeil-Lehrer Newshour” and as a contributing senior news analyst for PBS.

• Taliban kidnap 6 Afghan journalists
• ENDANGERED SPECIES: Attacks on journalists, press freedom raise concern

“Cokie was one of NPR’s ‘founding mothers,’ since 1978 her signature voice and commentary have accompanied public radio listeners, provided context for news and been a familiar presence in their homes,” NPR President and CEO Jarl Mohn said in a statement.

Roberts also wrote a number of New York Times bestselling books, most recently “Capital Dames: The Civil War and the Women of Washington, 1848-1868” in 2015.

Roberts is survived by her husband Steve V. Roberts and her children Lee Roberts and Rebecca Roberts, her grandchildren Regan, Hale and Cecilia Roberts and Claiborne, Jack and Roland Hartman, along with nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Vanguard News.