Mika Brzezinski facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mika Brzezinski
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Brzezinski in 2011
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Mika Emilie Leonia Brzezinski
May 2, 1967 New York City, U.S.
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| Alma mater | Williams College (BA) |
| Occupation | Television host, author |
| Employer | NBCUniversal |
| Television | Morning Joe (co-host) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) |
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| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Zbigniew Brzezinski (father) Emilie Benešová (mother) |
| Relatives | Ian Brzezinski (brother) Mark Brzezinski (brother) Matthew Brzezinski (cousin) |
Mika Emilie Leonia Brzezinski Scarborough, born on May 2, 1967, is an American television host and author. She is well-known for co-hosting the weekday morning show Morning Joe on MSNBC with her husband, Joe Scarborough. Before joining MSNBC, she worked as a correspondent for CBS News. She was also a key reporter at "Ground Zero" during the September 11 attacks.
Mika is the daughter of Zbigniew Brzezinski, a famous diplomat and political expert. Her father advised President Lyndon B. Johnson and was the National Security Advisor for President Jimmy Carter. Mika Brzezinski is also a visiting expert at the Harvard Institute of Politics. She is very interested in making sure women get paid fairly for their work. She has written three books: two about her career in journalism and one about food habits.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Mika Brzezinski was born in New York City on May 2, 1967. Her father, Zbigniew Brzeziński, was a foreign policy expert from Poland. Her mother, Emilie Anna Benešová, was a sculptor from Switzerland. Her mother's family has roots in the Czech Republic. Her great-aunt was Edvard Beneš, a former president of Czechoslovakia.
When Mika was born, her father was teaching at Columbia University. In 1976, her family moved to McLean, Virginia, near Washington, D.C.. This happened when her father became the United States National Security Advisor for President Jimmy Carter. Mika has two brothers. Her brother, Mark Brzezinski, is an American diplomat. He served as the United States Ambassador to Sweden from 2011 to 2015. He was also the United States Ambassador to Poland from 2022 to 2025. Her other brother, Ian Brzezinski, is an expert on military topics. Mika is also a cousin of the author Matthew Brzezinski.
Mika attended the Madeira School. She then studied at Georgetown University for two years. After that, she transferred to Williams College. She graduated from Williams College in 1989 with a degree in English.
Journalism Career
Mika Brzezinski started her career in journalism in 1990. She worked as an assistant at ABC's World News This Morning. A year later, she moved to WTIC-TV in Hartford, Connecticut. There, she became a general assignments reporter.
In 1992, she joined WFSB-TV in Hartford. She quickly became the weekday morning anchor in 1995. In 1997, she joined CBS News. She worked as a correspondent and anchor for the overnight news program Up to the Minute. In 2001, Brzezinski took a short break from CBS News. During this time, she worked for MSNBC on a show called HomePage.
Reporting on 9/11
Mika returned to CBS News in September 2001. She became a main reporter at "Ground Zero" after the September 11, 2001, attacks. Brzezinski was reporting live when the South Tower collapsed. In her last role at CBS News, she was a correspondent and fill-in anchor. She also contributed to CBS Sunday Morning and 60 Minutes.
Joining MSNBC
Brzezinski came back to MSNBC on January 26, 2007. She first did evening news updates. Then she worked on primetime newsbreaks during the week. She also reported for NBC Nightly News and sometimes anchored Weekend Today. Brzezinski decided to leave both shows when Joe Scarborough asked her to co-host Morning Joe.
Since Morning Joe began, Brzezinski has been a co-host and news reader. She works alongside Joe Scarborough and Willie Geist.
Advocating for Important News
On June 26, 2007, during Morning Joe, Brzezinski refused to read a story about a celebrity's release from jail. She felt that news about Senator Richard Lugar and the Iraq War was more important. After some playful comments from Joe Scarborough, she tried to burn the news script on air. She was stopped, but then she tore up the script. Later, she ran another copy of the script through a paper shredder. This moment became very popular online. Many people supported her protest. They saw it as a way to show the difference between serious news and entertainment news. Similarly, on July 7, 2010, she again showed her dislike for reporting on celebrity news.
Political Discussions
During the 2016 presidential campaign, Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough often interviewed Donald Trump by phone. Later, in December 2016, Brzezinski said that the Clinton campaign had tried to silence her. She claimed they called NBC executives to have her "pulled off the air."
In February 2017, Brzezinski decided that Trump's spokesperson, Kellyanne Conway, would no longer appear on her show. Brzezinski explained that she did not believe in "fake news" or untrue information. She felt that Conway's statements were often incorrect. Joe Scarborough added that Conway was "out of the loop" and not part of important meetings. He said she was just saying things to be on TV.
Disagreements with Donald Trump
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During the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump, who was a candidate at the time, posted messages on social media criticizing Brzezinski and Scarborough. In March 2017, Brzezinski called Trump's presidency "fake and failed." Soon after, Trump stopped following Brzezinski and Scarborough on social media.
In late June 2017, Brzezinski was again criticized by Trump on social media. He used strong words to describe her. Brzezinski and Scarborough then said that the White House had tried to pressure them. They claimed the White House threatened to share negative stories about them in a magazine unless they apologized to the President.
On May 20, 2020, while hosting Morning Joe, Brzezinski spoke out against Trump. He had posted a conspiracy theory about her husband. Brzezinski said, "Donald, you're a sick person. You're a sick person, to put this family through this, to put her husband through this, to do this just because you're mad at Joe." She also criticized his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Brzezinski later said she would contact Twitter about Trump's message, saying it broke their rules.
On May 26, 2020, The New York Times published a letter from Timothy Klausutis. He was the widower of Lori Klausutis. He asked Trump to stop using his late wife's memory for political gain. He also asked Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to remove Trump's messages. Later that day, Trump posted more messages that seemed to respond to the letter.
In November 2024, after the 2024 United States presidential election, Brzezinski and Scarborough met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.
Personal Life
On October 23, 1993, Mika Brzezinski married TV news reporter James Patrick Hoffer. They met while working at WTIC-TV. They have two daughters together. Hoffer and Brzezinski divorced in 2016.
In early 2017, Brzezinski became engaged to her Morning Joe co-host, Joe Scarborough. They got married on November 24, 2018, in Washington, D.C. Representative Elijah Cummings performed the ceremony. The couple spends their summers at Brzezinski's family home in Northeast Harbor, Maine.
Awards and Recognition
In 2021, Brzezinski was chosen for the first-ever Forbes 50 Over 50 list. This list celebrates successful entrepreneurs, leaders, scientists, and creators over the age of 50.
In August 2022, Brzezinski received an honorary doctorate from SWPS University.
Books Written
In January 2010, Brzezinski published her memoir titled All Things at Once. The New York Times described the book as following Brzezinski's career ups and downs. It covers her freelance jobs, late-night shifts, and important events like covering 9/11. The book also talks about the uncertainty of her employment. The News-Times said that Brzezinski uses her own career story to advise people who have lost their jobs. She sees unemployment as a "reset" that can be freeing. She was partly inspired to write the book after talking to young women who felt they couldn't have children before starting a career.
Her second book, Knowing Your Value: Women, Money and Getting What You're Worth, was published in 2011. This book focuses on women and financial discussions. It gives advice on how to negotiate salaries and pay packages. In 2018, this book was updated and re-released as Know Your Value. Her third book, Obsessed: America's Food Addiction and My Own, came out in 2012. In 2021, Forbes worked with Brzezinski and her "Know Your Value" project. They highlighted 50 diverse women over 50 who achieved great success later in life, often after overcoming challenges.
See also
In Spanish: Mika Brzezinski para niños
- Cable news in the United States
- New Yorkers in journalism
