Sean Hannity

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Sean Hannity at King of Prussia Mall (2004)
Born December 30, 1961 (1961-12-30) (age 45)
New York City, New York
Nationality American
Known for political commentary
Education High School Diploma
Employer Citadel Broadcasting, Fox News Channel
Occupation Television personality/host, Talk radio host, political pundit & Author
Political party Republican
Religious stance Roman Catholic
Spouse Jill Rhodes Hannity
Children Patrick and Merri Hannity
Parents Hugh J. and Lillian F. Hannity
Website Hannity.com
[1]

Sean Patrick Hannity (born December 30, 1961, in New York City, New York) is an Irish American, conservative broadcaster and political pundit.[2] He is the host of a talk radio show, The Sean Hannity Show, and the Fox News Channel weekend program Hannity's America. He is also the co-host of Fox News' program Hannity & Colmes, and the author of two New York Times best-selling books.[3][4]

Contents

Hannity is the son of Hugh J. and Lillian F. Hannity. Both his paternal and maternal grandparents emigrated from Ireland. He has two sisters, Joanne S. Hannity and Therese Grisham (Hannity). He grew up in Franklin Square, New York. During the late 1980s, Hannity worked in construction in Santa Barbara, California, and also as a bartender.[5] He has lived in Roswell, Georgia; Athens, Alabama; Lloyd Harbor, New York; and Santa Barbara, California. He married Jill Rhodes, a columnist for The Huntsville Times, on January 9, 1993. They have two children, Patrick and Merri Kelly Hannity.

Hannity attended St. Pius X Preparatory Seminary in Uniondale in Long Island, graduating in 1980 with a high school diploma. He dropped out of New York University because of financial issues, and decided to pursue a radio career. [5] He also received an honorary degree from Liberty University.[citation needed]

Sean Hannity is currently a nationally syndicated radio talk show host broadcasting from flagship station WABC (AM) in New York City, co-host of Hannity & Colmes, a Fox News political debate program, and host of Hannity's America, also on Fox News.

Hannity hosted his first talk radio show in 1989 at the volunteer college station at UC Santa Barbara, KCSB-FM, while working as a general contractor [6] The show aired for 40 hours of air time[7] and, according to Hannity, he was terrible.[8] Hannity's weekly show was cancelled after less than a year when KCSB management charged him with "discriminating against gays and lesbians" after two shows featuring the book The AIDS Coverup: The Real and Alarming Facts about AIDS by Gene Antonio. The station reversed its decision to dismiss Hannity due in part to a campaign conducted by the Santa Barbara Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Hannity decided against returning to KCSB.[9]

After leaving KCSB, Hannity placed an ad in radio publications presenting himself as "the most talked about college radio host in America," and WVNN in Athens, Alabama (part of the Huntsville market) hired him to be the afternoon talk show host.[7] From Huntsville, he moved to WGST in Atlanta in 1992, filling the slot vacated by Neal Boortz, who had moved to competing station WSB. In September 1996, Fox News founder Roger Ailes hired the then relatively unknown Hannity to co-host the television program Hannity & Colmes with Alan Colmes.

Hannity's radio and television shows draw praise from conservative politicians: "He has a great personality, and the tone counts for a lot," said Texas Sen. John Cornyn. "He's willing to ask questions and challenge the assumptions that many in the mainstream news media are not."[10] He also has been vocally critical of and has drawn criticism from progressive and liberal groups such as Media Matters for America.[11]

Further information: The Sean Hannity Show

Hannity's radio program is a conservative political talk show focusing on current issues and politicians.

The Sean Hannity Show began national syndication on September 10, 2001 on over 500 stations nationwide. As of spring 2006, the program is heard by over 12.5 million listeners a week.[12] In 2004, Hannity signed a $25 million five-year contract extension with ABC Radio to continue the show through 2009.[13] The program was made available via Armed Forces Radio Network in 2006. In June 2007, ABC Radio and Radio Networks was sold to Citadel Communications.

Further information: Hannity & Colmes

Hannity is a host of Hannity & Colmes, an American political debate television program on the Fox News Channel featuring Hannity and Alan Colmes as co-hosts. Hannity presents the conservative point of view with Colmes providing the liberal viewpoint Hannity has had on air clashes with show guests such as Fr. Thomas J. Euteneuer of Human Life International, who challenged Hannity on his public dissent from the Catholic Church on the issue of contraception.[14][15]

Hannity has organized and sponsored country music-themed "Freedom Concerts" since 2003 to raise funds for the Freedom Alliance Scholarship Fund, a charity created by Oliver North to provide college scholarships to children with a parent severely disabled or killed in military action. The concerts have been supported by artists such as Sara Evans, Martina McBride, Lee Greenwood, LeAnn Rimes, Montgomery Gentry, Darryl Worley, Charlie Daniels, and Michael W. Smith.

The Freedom Concerts were held annually in the Northern Star Arena at the Six Flags Great Adventure Amusement Park in Jackson, New Jersey through 2006. In 2007, the annual concert was expanded to a summer series held at locations across the United States, culminating with the September 11 event at Great Adventure marking the sixth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks.[16]

Speakers at the Sept 11, 2007 concert included Oliver North, Newt Gingrich, Republican Presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani and several conservative talk show hosts from WABC Radio.

In January 2007 Clear Channel Communications signed a groupwide three-year extension with Hannity on over 80 stations. The largest stations in the group deal included KTRH Houston, KFYI Phoenix, WPGB Pittsburgh, WKRC Cincinnati, WOOD-AM Grand Rapids, WFLA Tampa, WOAI San Antonio, WLAC Nashville, WREC Memphis and WTVN Columbus.[17]

In January 2007, Hannity began a new Sunday night television show on Fox News Channel called Hannity's America. The show is on Sundays at 9:00pm (Eastern).

In the 2005 documentary film This Divided State, Hannity is shown speaking to the students of Utah Valley State College and members of the surrounding community. Hannity also appeared as a newscaster in the 1998 thriller The Siege.

On August 9, 2007, in Cincinnati, Hannity hosted a $250.00 per person fundraiser for 2008 presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani.[18]

Since 2005, Hannity has run a dating service on his website, called "Hannidate," matching conservative or Republican-leaning singles. The stated purpose of Hannidate is to create a "place where people of like conservative minds can come together to meet."[19][20]

  1. ^ NNDB biography
  2. ^ "New York Times article", New York Times, October 17, 2006. 
  3. ^ "BEST SELLERS: September 22, 2002", New York Times, 2002-09-22. Retrieved on 2007-12-14. 
  4. ^ "BEST SELLERS: April 4, 2004", New York Times, 2004-04-04. Retrieved on 2007-12-14. 
  5. ^ a b Kurtz, Howard. "Radio's New Right-Fielder", Washington Post, January 14, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-11-04. 
  6. ^ [1] Free Republic article on Hannity
  7. ^ a b Sean Hannity's bio
  8. ^ CBS: 'Hannitization' Of America
  9. ^ http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=1158
  10. ^ HARD HITTER: Angry man Hannity a big draw at the Garden. Houston Chronicle. Sept. 2, 2004
  11. ^ Media Matters for America
  12. ^ TALKERS Magazine: The top talk radio audiences
  13. ^ "Sean Hannity Profile", WSGW 760, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-10-18. 
  14. ^ [2]
  15. ^ McCain, Robert Stacy "Hannity at Odds with Catholic Doctrine" Washington Times, March 14, 2007
  16. ^ Cotter, Kelly-Jane. [September 11, 2001 attacks "LET FREEDOM SING"], Asbury Park Press, September 7, 2007.
  17. ^ Coyle, Sanda."Clear Channel Radio Renews Sean Hannity Through 2010", Clear Channel Radio, September 28, 2006.
  18. ^ , Giuliani's Fox-y pal cash flap.
  19. ^ Hannidate website
  20. ^ Concord Monitor, 12/4/06. "Hannity's other side comes out on web: Fox News host fosters gay male hookups"
  21. ^ Had Enough Of the Flag Yet?

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