The Highest Paid Newscasters On Television

Published

3 years ago

February 10, 2022

Money + Investing Staff

In a period where information is breaking and flowing at a hundred miles per hour, television has become a bigger commodity than ever before. Whether it’s news, sports, finance or pop culture, people are consuming more information than ever, and they can thank all the reporters for that!

Reporters do the tough job of tracking down sources and following breaking reports so they can get you the news quickly, and they’re compensated mightily for it. But the ones really raking it in are the anchors behind the desk. Read ahead to see what the highest paid reporters are making!

Chris Wallace

Notable journalist Chris Wallace was formerly known to viewers for his work with ABC, but in the last two decades he’s primarily known for his position with Fox News. He makes $7 million a year, and has a net worth of $25 million, which surely accounts for his decades on air.

Kelly Ripa

The reason why Kelly is so animated is because she actually began her career as a soap opera star! Then she made it big on Live with Regis and Kelly, which is currently hosted by herself and Ryan Seacrest. She gets paid a hefty $22 million a year to make the news as interesting and entertaining as possible, and her net worth is an astounding $120 million!

Sean Hannity

Hannity is one of the most viewed (and most paid) TV hosts in the industry, known best for The Sean Hannity Show as well as co-hosting Fox and Friends. On top of that, he’s also a successful book author. With a $40 million annual salary, it’s easy to see how much influence he has in the business, where his net worth sits at a whopping $250 million!

Mika Brzezinsky

One of the two co-hosts on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Mika Brzezinsky is a staple personality for the network and has likely been a part of morning routines across the country. She has a networth of $20 million, and makes a healthy $8 million a year. Not bad for working with your husband.

Lester Holt

Lester’s been in the business as long as anyone, as he had an 18-year-long career before 2000 when he became an MSNBC host. He became a full-time news anchor for NBC Nightly News on weekends in 2007, eventually taking over for the weekdays as well once Brian Williams was let go. For his efforts, he earns $10 million, but rocks a net worth of $35 million.

Anderson Cooper

Did you know Anderson was a CIA intern during his college days? His passion was with journalism, however, and he was quickly proving his adeptness when he was filming student protests against the Burmese government in Myanmar and selling it to U.S. news agencies. Currently he’s a celebrated news anchor, and his $12 million pay and $250 million net worth reflects that.

Kaitlan Collins

Kaitlan Collins is a rising star and White House correspondent for CNN, and during the most recent presidency, she rose to fame while covering the barrage of stories from Pennsylvania Ave. She makes $120,000 for her duties, and now has a net worth of $1.5 million.

Barbara Walters

Walters’ broad talent has provided her with an extensive career. The View, 20/20, and Today are just a few of the shows she’s co-hosted. She first rose to fame in 1993 with Barbara Walters’ 10 Most Fascinating People, in which America learned to tune in every December for the revealing of her number one pick. As one of America’s most beloved newscasters, she earned a hefty $12 million a year but her net worth is $170 million!

Tucker Carlson

If you aren’t aware of who Tucker Carlson is, you must not pay attention to the news media because he’s Fox News’ cash cow. His fanatical fan base tunes in daily, and his $6 million salary hardly makes up for his $30 million net worth. He’ll be on TV for years to come, and is even flirting with a possible career in politics himself.

Brian Williams

People who watched NBC Nightly News loved Williams for the decade he hosted… That is until he was let go after it was discovered that he misconstrued and blatantly misrepresented facts during his coverage of the Iraq War in the early to mid 2000s. Currently he’s a chief anchor on MSNBC, still earning a hefty sum of $10 million, but his net worth is $40 million.

Chuck Todd

Host of television’s longest running broadcast, NBC’s Meet the Press, Chuck Todd has more recently become more of a public figure since getting a start out on MSNBC. His political roots at the Hotline catapulted his career, and now he gets paid $750,000 annually and has a net worth of $2 million.

Jake Tapper

Jake Tapper is the next most popular CNN host after Anderson Cooper, and hosts The Lead every evening in addition to State of the Union, their weekly news round-up, on Sundays. Tapper has made quite a name for himself, earning him a salary of $4 million and a net worth of $8 million.

Diane Sawyer

Diane certainly has some experience under her belt, most notably as White House Press Secretary Ron Ziegler’s assistant during Nixon’s presidency. Once she was hired by CBS, it was only a matter of time before she was working her way to prominence hosting shows like Good Morning America and 20/20. At the current height of her career she’s earning an impressive $22 million a year, boasting an impressive $80 million net worth.

Don Lemon

Don Lemon is CNN’s prime time star, and usually offers a different perspective on the trending issues through a racial lense. Not only is he making upwards of $4 million a year, but his net work exceeds $10 million now. Hard to see that stopping with his ratings and devoted audience.

Laura Ingraham

A former speechwriter for the Reagan administration and radio host for two decades, Laura Ingraham now hosts her own primetime show on Fox News and has one of the strongest voices on the network. She has a whopping net worth of $40 million, while being paid $15 million a year.

Chris Cuomo

Chris Cuomo hosts the coveted 8 p.m. news hour for CNN, where he landed after a multitude of other news jobs, including hosting Good Morning America and the morning CNN broadcast. He pulls in a $6 million salary, and has a net worth of $12 million.

George Stephanopoulos

Formerly a communications manager in the democratic party, George Stephanopolous transitioned to journalism post-politics, He currently works for ABC News as their main anchor, and Good Morning America when he can. His net worth is $20 million, and he makes $15 million a year.

Geraldo Rivera

Known for his legal prowess and provocative personality, Geraldo Rivera has also become a familiar face for those who watch Fox News. He’s commonly known as one of the co-hosts of The Five today, netting him a worth of $20 million and giving him a salary of $5 million.

Katie Couric

Katie’s 15-year-long stint on The Today Show ended when she left to become CBS Evening News’ first female anchor. She became so popular that she was able to use her fame to launch her own talk show in 2012, becoming anchor for Yahoo! News a couple years following. For her immense talent, she earns $15 million per year and has a net worth of $100 million!

Rachel Maddow

Over the years, Rachel Maddow has positioned herself as one of America’s most trusted news authorities. She isn’t afraid to voice her political opinions on her television and radio shows The Rachel Maddow Show. Because of her influence, she’s paid a handsome $7 million a year, and sits with a net worth of $25 million!

Abby Phillips

Abby Phillips is another young CNN correspondent that’s become a star thanks to covering the White House in recent years. She too makes around $120,000 for her role in reporting, and has a net worth of $1 million. Not bad for a girl who graduated from ABC, the Washington Post and landed on TV.

Tomi Lahren

Tomi is a young “rising media star” according to The New York Times and BBC News, amongst the most respected conservative political commentators in the industry. At just 28 years old, she’s already earning a promising $200,000 a year and has a net worth of $3 million, but she’s earned more enemies and allies as of late, currently resorting to a contributor position with Fox News.

S.E. Cupp

S.E. Cupp is a familiar face in the news industry, as she’s worked for the big three major news networks in Fox, MSNBC, and currently CNN. She’s also made a name for herself writing columns in many prominent publications. She makes about $500,000 a year and has a net worth of $6 million.

Chris Hayes

Chris Hayes has become a figurehead at MSNBC, and brings one of the most unique and in-depth takes on politics from a very high level. Since his audience is niche, he makes a salary of $600,000 a year, and has a net worth of $5 million. And while still young, his career is bound to be a long one.

Wolf Blitzer

Wolf’s career extends all the way back to the ‘70s when he was a writer for Reuters in Tel Aviv. From then on through the ‘90s he wrote for the Jerusalem Post where he reported on all kinds of intriguing news stories. When he was hired at CNN, he quickly became one of their leading stars. Surprisingly, though, he only earns $5 million — a modest sum compared to some of the others…But his net worth is still $20 million.

David Muir

Host of ABC’s World News Tonight, David Muir has been another media veteran despite being relatively young to the scene. He also co-hosts 20/20, and elevated from award-winning local journalist to cementing himself as a chief anchor for one of the biggest networks. His salary is $5 million a year, and his net worth is $20 million.

Jim Rome

Currently Jim is one of the most popular sports broadcasters in the business, but during the beginning of his career in the late ‘80s he started out as a Santa Barbara radio intern, eventually given the traffic report position. By 1997 he was tapped by Fox Sports Net to host The Last Word and then Jim Rome is Burning. Currently he works for CBS Sports and earns a whopping $30 mil a year, with a net worth of $85 million!

Jimmy Kimmel

Originally Ben Stein’s counterpart on Win Ben Stein’s Money, Kimmel has rapidly become a rising star to the point where he currently hosts his own show Jimmy Kimmel Live!. His knack for making current events hip and putting a comedic spin on politics earns him a respectable $15 million and net worth of $45 million.

Michael Strahan

Michael really is an all-star, both on and off the field. When his 15-year-long NFL career ended, he found his place as a sports analyst, but his talent didn’t end there. He and Kelly Ripa hosted Live! with Kelly and Michael to great success for four years until he decided to work full-time on Good Morning America, where he’s currently earning a cool $17 million a year, repping a net worth of $65 million.

Al Roker

Roker is a long-standing member of the media reporting industry, first making it big in 1983 when NBC hired him as their main stand-in. Then in 1996 he began his now-24-year stint on Today as everyone’s favorite weatherman. In fact, he’s so prominent in the position that he earns a respectable $10 million per year, giving him a net worth of $70 million.

Megyn Kelly

Megyn’s reporting career all began while attending law school when she decided to take some journalism classes on the side. She’s reported for numerous shows since — including Entertainment Tonight and Fox and Friends and Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly. After a short stint for NBC that ended with controversy in 2018, she resorted to podcasts and YouTube, where she earns a hefty $23 million annually and has a net worth of $45!

Samantha Steele Ponder

Samantha is every sports fan’s favorite reporter and has been working as ESPN’s College GameDay’s main anchor for over five years. She’s also a favorite as Thursday Night College Football’s sideline reporter. And she’s paid well for her efforts — $5 million per year, with a net worth of $12.5 million!

Erin Andrews

Erin’s career all started as a freelancer for Fox Sports where she reported on the Tampa Bay Lightning, but then ESPN noticed her immense talent and hired her in 2004. Since then she’s covered major sporting events from the Super Bowl to the World Series and earns $2 million a year for her reporting talent, giving her a net worth of $30 million!

Shepard Smith

Smith has been a favored member of Fox since 1996 and had been hosting his own show Shepard Smith Reporting since 2013 before leaving Fox in 2019. For all of his efforts, he earned $10 million annually, leaving him a net worth of $25 million.

Lara Spencer

Lara is currently known for her hosting on Good Morning America, but before that she was a host for The Insider for seven years. She’s since found her stride on HGTV and has even authored two books about how to find and sell second-hand items. As a respected TV personality she makes a decent $3 million per year, with a net worth of $6 million.

Bill O’Reilly

Love him or hate him, O’Reilly is (was) one of the most prominent TV personalities on cable. He was a Fox News affiliate for over 20 years, attracting millions to his show The O’Reilly Factor (it was the highest-rated show on cable), until just this past year when he was fired after the discovery of his disreputable past. Up until then he was raking in $25 million a year, with his net worth still standing at $85 million.

Jon Stewart

He was everyone’s favorite comedic reporter (in fact, he began his career as a stand up comedian). He found his stride on The Daily Show and quickly became a TV legend during his 16-year-long run before retiring in 2015. During his later years on the show, he was earning a staggering $25 million a year, and his net worth is still $100 million!

Wendy Williams

Wendy has found tremendous success with her personal show (which has been renewed), but before then she was known amongst her listeners as one of the most outspoken and vocal voices on radio in New York City. As one of the most tenacious TV personalities, she earns a sturdy $10 million a year with an impressive net worth of $40 million!

Chris Matthews

Matthews’ own career actually began in print at the San Francisco Examiner, including a stint as a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. He was most well known for Hardball with Chris Matthews which was shown on MSNBC, but he resigned amidst controversy over his age and nature of certain comments. For his achievements, he garners a respectable $5 million annual salary, and still holds a net worth of $20 million.

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