Ainsley Hayden Earhardt is a renowned American broadcast journalist and television personality who is best known for her work at the Fox network’s Fox News Channel where she serves in the capacity of a reporter and anchor. Earhardt appears on Fox News as a conservative political commentator representing the network. She serves as the co-host of ‘Fox & Friends’ and appears on ‘Hannity’. Previously, Earhardt appeared on shows like ‘Fox and Friends Weekend’, ‘America’s News Headquarters’, Red Eye W/ Greg Gutfeld’, ‘The Live Desk’ etc.
Earhardt began her journalism career when she was hired as a news reporter by WLTX-News 19 in Columbia, South Carolina. She quickly became one of the most popular anchors at the network, hosting the morning and noon slot of news which were both rated number 1. She repeated the phenomena when she was hired by the San Antonio, Texas, based CBS affiliate KENS-TV but became known nationally only after she began her career at the national Fox network.
Early Life and Education
Earhardt was born on 20 September 1976 in Spartanburg, South Carolina, U.S. as the middle child of Lewie Wayne Earhardt and his wife. She was raised in Foxcroft area, Charlotte, North Carolina for a few years until her family moved to Columbia, South Carolina area. Earhardt has 2 siblings, an older sister named Elise Giles Earhardt and a younger brother named Trenton Graham Earhardt.
Earhardt attended Sharon Elementary School while in Charlotte, NC and Spring Valley High School in Columbia, SC from where she graduated. She then enrolled into Florida State University (FSU) after receiving a leadership and academic scholarship and majored in biology. Then transferred to University of South Carolina (USC) from where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism.
Career Rise
Earhardt began her career in journalism while she was still a journalism student at USC, when she was hired by the South Carolina-based local CBS station WLTX-News 19 as a news reporter. From 2000 to 2004, Earhardt served as the network’s morning and noon news anchor, with both her shows receiving a number 1 rating. Earhardt travelled to the city of New York to cover a story on middle school students from South Carolina who donated approximately half a million dollars to the firefighters in the wake of the September 11 attacks. Earhardt’s work was recognized by Columbia Metropolitan Magazine who named her Personality of The Year. Earhardt moved to San Antonio, Texas, to join the CBS affiliate KENS-TV where she served as an anchor. She hosted the weekday newscasts for ‘Eyewitness News This Morning’ and ‘Eyewitness News at Noon’, with both shows being rated No. 1, once again.
Earhardt started gaining nationwide recognition when she offered a position at the national Fox network in 2007 for which she shifted base to New York City. Earhardt first hosted the curtain-raiser for the network’s most popular show ‘Fox and Friends’, after which she was named as the host of the show, replacing Elisabeth Hasselbeck following her resignation. Earhardt is one of the most prominent figures at the Fox network where she appears as a daily news anchor on Fox News Channel. She has made appearances on shows like ‘Hannity’ which features the segment “Ainsley Across America”. She has also served as a co-host of ‘Fox and Friends Weekend’, ‘America’s News Headquarters’, ‘Greg Gutfeld’s Red Eye’ and served as a panellist on ‘The Live Desk’.
Personal Life
Earhardt has been married twice. Eardharth was first married to Kevin Wayne McKinney from 2005-2010. Earhardt then started dating former football quarterback Will Proctor, who currently serves with Neuberger Berman as a wealth advisor. She married him in October 2012. Together, they are parents to one child, a daughter named Hayden Dubose Proctor, born in November 2015. The family resides together in New York City.
While she was based in Texas, Earhardt completed the Austin half-marathon and even went skydiving with the Golden Knights of U.S. Army. She also flew in an F-16 aircraft at the Air Force Academy with the Air Force Thunderbirds.
Ainsley Earhardt – Net Worth and Salary
Earhardt earns an annual salary of approximately $400,000. She has an estimated net worth of approximately $5 Million.