Famous American Journalists

Hunter S. Thompson was an American author and journalist. He is credited with creating his own subgenre of New Journalism called the gonzo journalism. The author of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, which was later adapted into a film, Thompson was famous for his lifelong use of drugs and alcohol. His books have had a major impact on counterculture.

William Randolph Hearst was an American newspaper publisher, businessman, and politician. He is credited with developing America's largest newspaper chain, Hearst Communications. Today, Hearst Communications has grown into a multinational business information and mass media conglomerate. William Randolph Hearst’s life and work inspired the creation of Charles Foster Kane, the main character in the 1941 drama film, Citizen Kane.

Barbara Walters is an American retired television personality and broadcast journalist. Renowned for her popularity with viewers, Walters appeared as the host of several popular TV shows. A pioneer for women in broadcasting, Walters became the first woman to co-host shows like Today and ABC Evening News. In 1996, she was named in TV Guide’s 50 Greatest TV Stars list.

Renowned British-American documentary filmmaker, Louis Theroux began his career as a journalist with Metro Silicon Valley, Spy magazine and TV Nation series. He gained recognition with his documentary series When Louis Met..., and Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends. The two time BAFTA Award winner has also received appreciation for his documentaries The Most Hated Family in America and My Scientology Movie.

Hailing from a humble background, Gloria Steinem went on to become a celebrated journalist and an iconic feminist. Founder of the New York magazine and Ms Magazine, her life has been dedicated to writing, talking and fighting for women’s rights, gender equality, legalisation of abortion, among other things. She brought issues like female genital mutilation to the forefront in America.

Famous American journalist, Maria Shriver, is recognised for her long association with NBC. Her documentary series The Alzheimer’s Project earned rave reviews and she later founded the nonprofit organization, 'The Women's Alzheimer's Movement'. As the former First Lady of California– she was married to Arnold Schwarzenegger when he was the governor of California– she involved herself in numerous charity works.

Christopher Hitchens was an advocate for New Atheism and a harsh critic of religion and of famous personalities such as Bill Clinton and Mother Teresa. He authored and edited many books on socio-political issues. As a journalist, he wrote for well-known publications such as New Statesman and The Weekly Standard.

A former basketball and tennis player, Rubin Roberts began her career as a sports anchor and reporter for a Mississippi channel, WDAM-TV, eventually joining ESPN as sportscaster, concurrently serving as a featured reporter for Good Morning America. In 2005, she left ESPN to become a co-anchor for Good Morning America, currently serving as an anchor for the same program.

Known for her stints on Fox News and CBS News, TV journalist Gretchen Carlson made headlines when she accused Fox CEO Roger Ailes of having sexually harassed her earlier, eventually causing him to resign. The former Miss America is also a skilled classical violinist and a Juilliard alumna.

Bill O'Reilly is an American author, journalist, and former TV host. The host of Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor, O'Reilly played a major role in the success of Fox News Channel during his time at the channel. He is also credited with founding the No Spin News podcast, which he has been hosting since 2017.

Walt Whitman was an American poet, journalist, and essayist. Also a humanist, Whitman played a crucial role in the shift between transcendentalism and realism. Often referred to as the father of free verse, Whitman is one of the most influential American poets of all time. Several decades after his death, Walt Whitman's poetry remains influential.

Lester Holt is an American journalist who is the face of 'NBC News' since 2000. He hosts and co-hosts some of NBC's important programs, such as Dateline NBC and NBC Nightly News. In 1990, he was honored with the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for his work. In 2015, he was made an inductee of the California Hall of Fame.

Jack London was an American novelist, social activist, and journalist. A pioneer of American magazines and commercial fiction, London was one of the first authors from the US to become an international celebrity. His life and work inspired several films, such as the 1943 movie Jack London and 1980 film Klondike Fever. He was also portrayed in several TV series.

Canadian-American journalist Peter Jennings is best remembered for his stint on ABC World News Tonight, as its sole anchor. A high-school drop-out, Jennings became one of the U.S.’s Big Three news anchors, along with Tom Brokaw and Dan Rather. He was known for his meticulous coverage of breaking news stories.

English-born American television presenter, actor, politician, and musician Jerry Springer is a multifaceted man. A qualified lawyer, he shifted to politics from law as a young man. After a few years, he moved to journalism and found considerable success. As a TV presenter, he is best known for the tabloid talk show, The Jerry Springer Show. 

Stephen A. Smith is an American sports journalist, sports radio host, and sports television personality. Known for his use of popular catchphrases, such as stay off the weed and blasphemous, Smith has been playing a major role in the success of ESPN's First Take. He also appears on SportsCenter and hosts his own radio show, The Stephen A. Smith Show.

Broadcast journalist and television talk show host Tamron Hall is best known for her eponymous award-winning syndicated daytime talk show. She has previously worked for NBC News and MSNBC. An alumnus of Temple University, she is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists. She is actively involved in anti-domestic violence campaigns.

Fareed Zakaria is an Indian-American journalist, author, and political commentator. He has been serving as an editor-at-large for Time and editor for Newsweek International. He has also been serving as a columnist for Newsweek. His show, Fareed Zakaria GPS, which he hosts for CNN, has won a Peabody Award. 

Jesse Watters is best known for his aggressive ambush journalism and for his vox pop interviews featured in the "Watters' World” segment of the show The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News. A seasoned political commentator, he has also hosted the talk shows The Five and Outnumbered.

Kaitlan Collins is one of the most popular and influential American journalists of the current generation. As a White House correspondent for CNN, Collins traveled to at least six different countries with Donald Trump. She made headlines when she questioned Trump about Vladimir Putin, for which she was forbidden from attending a Trump administration press conference in 2018.

Chris Hansen is an American YouTube personality and television journalist known for his work on the popular news magazine/reality legal show, Dateline NBC. The winner of eight Emmy Awards, Hansen's work on one of Dateline NBC's former segments To Catch a Predator, which focused on zeroing in on potential Internet sex predators, received much appreciation.

Nellie Bly was an American industrialist, journalist, inventor, and charity worker. She is remembered for her circumnavigation of the world in 72 days. She is also known for pioneering a new kind of investigative journalism as she worked undercover from within a mental institution to report on the institution. Nellie Bly’s life and work have inspired several works of art.

NBC News anchor and broadcast journalist Savannah Guthrie is best known for co-anchoring the show Today. She appeared in the series finale of 30 Rock. She has penned two children’s books, too. She is also a practicing lawyer and has worked with domestic abuse victims.

Dana Bash is an American journalist. Currently working as a chief political correspondent for CNN, Dana Bash has played a major role in the success of the TV channel. She became one of the few women to be honored in a 2014 event called Women in Washington Power List, which was organized by Elle magazine.

Gayle King is an American author and TV personality. Since 2012, King has been co-hosting CBS News' popular program, CBS This Morning. She has also been serving as CBS News' broadcast journalist. Also an editor-at-large for the famous O, The Oprah Magazine, King was included in Time magazine's list of 100 Most Influential People in 2019.

Erin Burnett is an American news anchor. Dubbed the International Superstar, Burnett has hosted her own show Erin Burnett OutFront from the borders of Afghanistan, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates; she has also worked on a number of documentaries filmed inside India, Nigeria, Russia, and Libya. She has also reported from countries like Pakistan and China.

Born to Indian-origin parents in the U.S., Sanjay Gupta is an acclaimed neurosurgeon and medical writer. He has also had a successful stint as a medical reporter for CNN, covering medical issues at wars and disasters. He has played himself in the movie Contagion and is a skilled accordion player.

Lara Logan is a South African radio and television journalist. She has also worked as a war correspondent; in 2001, she interviewed General Babajan after successfully infiltrating the American-British-backed Northern Alliance at the Bagram Air Base. Over the years Lara Logan has worked for popular news channels like CBS News and Fox Nation. 

Freelance journalist and author Chuck Palahniuk specializes in what he calls transgressional fiction. His popular novel Fight Club was adapted into a film starring Brad Pitt and also won awards such as the Oregon Book Award for Best Novel. Though critics call his books nihilistic, he himself calls them romantic.