What is Lawrence O’Donnell’s Net Worth and Salary?
Lawrence O’Donnell, a news broadcaster and TV writer, has a net worth of $16 million, primarily from his work as a political commentator and anchor for MSNBC. O’Donnell also had a successful career as a writer, producing the hit series “The West Wing” and serving as an executive producer for “Mister Sterling.”
His passion for politics led him to become an aide to US Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and staff director for the Senate Finance Committee. O’Donnell eventually created “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell,” one of MSNBC’s flagship shows.
Despite his success, O’Donnell identifies as a “practical European socialist.” His current salary at MSNBC is $4 million per year.
Early Life and Education
Lawrence Francis O’Donnell Jr. was born in Boston in 1951. He grew up in a Catholic household with an office manager and an attorney as parents. O’Donnell attended a private, Catholic all-boys school where he played baseball and football. He went on to study economics at Harvard College, where he also wrote for the “Harvard Lampoon.” O’Donnell graduated in 1976.
Lawrence O’Donnell’s Career Highlights
After graduating from Harvard, Lawrence O’Donnell became a writer and published his first novel, “Deadly Force,” in 1983. He then worked as an aide to Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and held staff director positions for the United States Committee on Environment and Public Works and the United States Senate Committee on Finance.
O’Donnell also wrote several episodes of “The West Wing” and won an Emmy Award for his work on the show. He later joined MSNBC and contributed to “Morning Joe” before hosting his own show, “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell,” which debuted in 2011.
O’Donnell Raises $19 Million to Provide Desks and Scholarships for African Students
Lawrence O’Donnell partnered with UNICEF and MSNBC to create a fund that provides African students with desks. In 2013, the program raised over $6.5 million, enough to provide 100,000 desks to classrooms across the continent. Later, scholarships were created to help young girls in Malawi get a proper education. In 2017, the program announced that it had raised $19 million.
Controversies
Lawrence has been involved in multiple controversies throughout his career. In 2007, he faced backlash for criticizing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and claiming that the religion was invented by a man who got caught having sex with his maid. He later apologized for his statements.
In 2010, he made racially insensitive comments about Michael Steele, for which he apologized. He also faced criticism for breaking a promise during an interview with Ron Paul.
In 2017, a video of Lawrence swearing about background noise on set was leaked, and he issued an apology. In 2019, he reported a fake story about Donald Trump having loan applications cosigned by Russian oligarchs, which he later referred to as an “error in judgment.”
