Ed Gordon (journalist) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ed Gordon
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Ed Gordon in 2008
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| Born |
Edward Lansing Gordon III
August 17, 1960 |
| Education | Western Michigan University (BA) |
| Occupation | Television journalist, talk show host |
| Years active | 1986 – present |
| Spouse(s) | Karen Haney (divorced) Leslie Howard (current) |
| Children | 1 |
| Parent(s) | Ed Gordon Jr. Jimmie Hunt |
Edward Lansing Gordon III (born August 17, 1960) is an American television journalist. He is well-known for his work with BET over many years.
Ed Gordon was born in Detroit, Michigan. His father, also named Ed Gordon, was an Olympic athlete. Ed Gordon was the main news anchor for BET from 1988 to 1996 and again from 2000 to 2001. He also hosted interview shows like BET Tonight (2001-2002) and Weekly with Ed Gordon (2010-2011).
Besides BET, Gordon worked for other big news organizations. These include NBC News (1996-2000), CBS News (2004-2005), and NPR (2005-2006). From 2006 to 2010, he hosted a talk show called Our World with Black Enterprise. This show was shown on many different TV stations.
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About Ed Gordon
Ed Gordon was born in Detroit, Michigan. His father, Ed Gordon Jr., was a schoolteacher. He won a gold medal in the 1932 Summer Olympics for the long jump. Ed's mother, Jimmie, was also a teacher.
After high school, Ed Gordon went to Western Michigan University. He graduated in 1982 with a degree in communications and political science.
Ed Gordon's Career
Starting in Detroit (1983–1988)
Ed Gordon wanted to be a television journalist. He took an unpaid internship at WTVS, a PBS TV station in Detroit. He worked there as a production assistant from 1983 to 1985.
In 1986, Gordon became the host of a local weekly talk show called Detroit Black Journal. At the same time, he also worked as a freelance journalist for a new cable network, Black Entertainment Television (BET).
First Time at BET (1988–1996)
In 1988, Gordon joined BET full-time. He became the anchor of BET News, a weekly show. This show covered important topics for African Americans and popular culture. When Gordon worked at BET, the news team was small, with only about 20 people. He often produced his interviews with just one or two helpers.
Starting in 1990, Gordon also hosted special hour-long interviews. These were part of a series called Conversation with Ed Gordon. He interviewed many famous people. These included President Bill Clinton, actor Sidney Poitier, and singer Whitney Houston. After the 1992 Los Angeles riots, Gordon hosted a BET special. It was called L.A. Aftermath: Black Men Speak Out. He also did the first interview with U.S. President George H. W. Bush after the riots.
On January 25, 1996, Gordon was the first journalist to interview former NFL star O. J. Simpson. This interview happened after Simpson was found not guilty in a famous court case.
Working with NBC (1996–2000)
In July 1996, Gordon left BET to join NBC News. He became a daytime anchor and host of a weekly talk show called Internight on NBC's cable network, MSNBC. He also contributed to NBC's morning show, Today.
At MSNBC, Gordon covered big news events in the late 1990s. These included the Republican and Democratic National Conventions in 1996. He also reported on the process to remove President Bill Clinton from office. He covered the crash of Swissair Flight 111 and Pope John Paul II's visit to Cuba in 1998. In March 1999, Gordon became a regular reporter for Dateline NBC.
Second Time at BET (2000–2004)
Gordon returned to BET in 2000. He hosted BET News again, but this time it was a nightly show.
In 2001, Gordon took over as host of the interview show BET Tonight. BET then decided to focus more on entertainment. They cut their news staff and canceled BET Tonight in December 2002. Other public affairs shows hosted by Gordon, like Lead Story and Teen Summit, were also canceled. Gordon continued to work for BET until 2004. During this time, he interviewed Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry for a special broadcast.
CBS and NPR (2004–2006)
In November 2004, Gordon became a reporter for the CBS News program 60 Minutes II. This show ran until 2005. After another journalist left National Public Radio (NPR), Gordon started hosting a show there. It was called News & Notes. This show also focused on African-American issues. He hosted it from 2005 to 2006.
Recent Work (Since 2006)
From 2006 to 2010, Gordon hosted the talk show Our World with Black Enterprise. This show was shown on many different TV stations across the country.
In March 2010, BET announced that Gordon would come back to the network. He would host "a variety of news programs and specials." Gordon's newest series, Weekly with Ed Gordon, started on October 3, 2010. The first episode featured an interview with Representative Charles B. Rangel. In the show, Gordon also talked about news and culture with a panel of four people. The show ran until March 2011.
In the fall of 2016, Gordon hosted a weekly news show on Bounce TV called Ed Gordon.
In 2020, Gordon released a book titled Conversations in Black: On Power, Politics, and Leadership.
In 2023, he returned to BET as a reporter for a newsmagazine called America in Black. This show was made with CBS News. He also appeared several times on the second season, which came out in 2024. He interviewed President Joe Biden in July 2024.
Awards
- Emmy Award
- NAACP Image Award
- National Association of Black Journalists Journalist of the Year award
- Communication Excellence to Black Audiences Award for Merit
- Named in People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" list
Personal Life
Ed Gordon has a daughter named Taylor, who was born in 1993. She is from his first marriage to Karen Haney. When he worked for BET in Washington, D.C., he lived nearby in Alexandria, Virginia. He is now married to Leslie Howard and is a stepfather to her two children.
