Hannity and his sister opened a wallpaper business in the 1980s
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
As Sean Hannity himself has said, he is not a journalist. As noted by The New York Times, Hannity attended both New York University and Adelphi University, but by the 1980s, he had abandoned his academic pursuits and dropped out after just two years. With no degree and not a ton of professional experience, the Hannity and his sister, Teddy Grisham, put their heads together and left New York, venturing to Rhode Island to persue a new line of work.
While it may come as a surprise — given that we know Hannity for his radio and television pursuits — the host and his sister started a wallpaper and design business while in Rhode Island, paying the bills with the unique line of work. In his interview with The Times, Hannity admitted that while he was waiting for a new job, he would turn to novels and written material by the likes of Taylor Caldwell, a member of the controversial John Birch Society. The author, Hannity admitted, is still a cherished writer.
A 27-year-old Hannity took an unpaid position at a California radio station
Gabe Ginsberg/Getty Images
From New York to Rhode Island to California, Sean Hannity spent his early career years trying to find his footing. While he continued working in the home decor space — he tried his hand at wallpapering, contract work, and house painting — Hannity sought after bigger and better things, eventually landing a job at the KCSB radio station in Santa Barbara, California. The catch? It was unpaid, as detailed by The Washington Post.
In his application to the station, the young Hannity detailed his professional aspirations, telling his future employer that he was “a serious intellectual,” despite not having finished his undergraduate degree. “It’s my hope to make radio a career at some point,” Hannity then wrote. “[I have] developed a lot of discipline and good-working habits.” He must’ve said something right because the 27-year-old got the gig and took to the air on Tuesday mornings at 9 a.m. It was at the station in the solidly liberal town that Hannity started to garner attention, but it wasn’t for the most heartwarming of reasons.
Hannity started to cast himself as a controversial figure, and lost his radio job as a result
Paul Zimmerman/Getty Images
So at this point in his career, Sean Hannity worked in the home improvement arena and had an unpaid position at a Santa Barbara radio station — not exactly bringing home the bacon, but things were looking up, right? Not exactly. As noted by The Washington Post, Hannity started to make some seriously offensive comments while on the air (not entirely surprising given his m.o.) and was soon under pressure from the station. On the air he claimed, “Contrary to what we hear in the general media, you can get AIDS from saliva, from tears. . . . They won’t let you say it’s a gay disease.” He also engaged in a back-and-forth with a guest who made derogatory and false claims about how AIDS is spread.
During an appearance on the “Shoot This Now” podcast, Hannity reflected on those early days hitting the airwaves (via The Wrap). “Almost 30 years ago when I was starting out in radio in my 20s, I interviewed a controversial guest who made several incendiary comments. I was young and stupid with no clue how to do a show,” Hannity later stated about the incidents. “I freely admit the comments in my 20s were ignorant and embarrassing.” The young radio host lost his job at the station as a result of his on-air behavior and went to the ACLU to help him in the case. Ultimately, he was offered his job back but he turned it down.
The radio host accepted a low-ball offer to be on the air in Alabama
Rob Kim/Getty Images
While Sean Hannity worked an unpaid radio gig in California, he certainly caught people’s attention. As a result, his name spread a bit like a brush fire and made it all the way to Alabama, where radio guru Bill Dunnavent was searching for on-air talent. It was the 1990s, the Fairness Doctrine – establishing balanced political perspectives on radio and television news — had been killed, and Dunnavent was wading into a new swamp: “highly opinionated political talk radio,” as detailed by The Washington Post. More than 50 people applied for the position at Alabama’s WVNN, and one stood out among the others: Hannity.
“I hired Sean because he had enough guts to stand up for his convictions and because he sounded different from everybody else in our area,” Dunnavent admitted, of both Hannity’s on-air style and his existing New York accent. The young pundit’s new boss gave him the ground rules: “We don’t talk about religion, and we don’t talk about abortion,” and paid him $19,000 a year. Not great, but still better than being unpaid — we can all agree on something.
A fellow radio host asserted that Sean Hannity could lose millions if he’s not careful
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Throughout the course of his life, Sean Hannity transformed from a kid born into a modest family to an unpaid (and fired) radio host, to a multi-millionaire collecting $45 million a year. To say that his financial growth is impressive is an understatement, but not everyone feels as though the host’s finances are secure. Chip Franklin, a fellow radio host, crossed paths with Hannity in New York, as they were both conservative-pushing pundits. As he told The Washington Post, Franklin is now a liberal supporter and has moved the political ideology of his show accordingly, but the same honesty — in his opinion — can’t be said about Hannity.
“I know Hannity knew that Obama was born in the United States. I know Hannity has the same facts we all do about the crowd size at the inauguration or the Russian connection,” Franklin said of Hannity’s most well-known on-air fibs. “I know that because I knew him in New York and he was always a conservative, but not like this.” In Franklin’s perspective, Hannity “got in this boat” of conservative media and failed to realize how powerful “the current was.” He continued, saying, “People adore him now. Nobody around him wants him to change. So he doubles down. He can’t go against his audience because he’ll lose millions of dollars.”
Sean Hannity Is Worth A Lot More Money Than You Think
Ben Gabbe/Getty Images
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
Famously, Hannity does not consider himself a journalist, but making it big on a news network has certainly boosted his public image (via The New York Times). From working with Trump as an adviser to joining political hopeful Dr. Oz “behind the scenes” to help him reach office, Hannity is in his own lane — and thriving financially as a result. Per Celebrity Net Worth, Hannity takes home $45 million annually. So how did he get there?
The controversial host had a modest childhood
Bloomberg/Getty Images
Sean Hannity had odd jobs as a teenager, all while tuning into the radio
Ed Rode/Getty Images
“I think in my life, I’m just a worker bee,” Hannity told The Times, recounting that in his off-hours, he turned to the likes of Barry Farber and Bob Grant — then two local radio hosts who veered to the right side of the political spectrum. “It was never, ‘Turn off the television!’” Hannity said of his parents. “It was: ‘Turn that blankety-blank radio off now! Turn it off!’ And I’d say, ‘Fine,’ and then my parents would leave, and I’d put it back on.”
Hannity and his sister opened a wallpaper business in the 1980s
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
As Sean Hannity himself has said, he is not a journalist. As noted by The New York Times, Hannity attended both New York University and Adelphi University, but by the 1980s, he had abandoned his academic pursuits and dropped out after just two years. With no degree and not a ton of professional experience, the Hannity and his sister, Teddy Grisham, put their heads together and left New York, venturing to Rhode Island to persue a new line of work.
While it may come as a surprise — given that we know Hannity for his radio and television pursuits — the host and his sister started a wallpaper and design business while in Rhode Island, paying the bills with the unique line of work. In his interview with The Times, Hannity admitted that while he was waiting for a new job, he would turn to novels and written material by the likes of Taylor Caldwell, a member of the controversial John Birch Society. The author, Hannity admitted, is still a cherished writer.
While it may come as a surprise — given that we know Hannity for his radio and television pursuits — the host and his sister started a wallpaper and design business while in Rhode Island, paying the bills with the unique line of work. In his interview with The Times, Hannity admitted that while he was waiting for a new job, he would turn to novels and written material by the likes of Taylor Caldwell, a member of the controversial John Birch Society. The author, Hannity admitted, is still a cherished writer.
A 27-year-old Hannity took an unpaid position at a California radio station
Gabe Ginsberg/Getty Images
From New York to Rhode Island to California, Sean Hannity spent his early career years trying to find his footing. While he continued working in the home decor space — he tried his hand at wallpapering, contract work, and house painting — Hannity sought after bigger and better things, eventually landing a job at the KCSB radio station in Santa Barbara, California. The catch? It was unpaid, as detailed by The Washington Post.
In his application to the station, the young Hannity detailed his professional aspirations, telling his future employer that he was “a serious intellectual,” despite not having finished his undergraduate degree. “It’s my hope to make radio a career at some point,” Hannity then wrote. “[I have] developed a lot of discipline and good-working habits.” He must’ve said something right because the 27-year-old got the gig and took to the air on Tuesday mornings at 9 a.m. It was at the station in the solidly liberal town that Hannity started to garner attention, but it wasn’t for the most heartwarming of reasons.
In his application to the station, the young Hannity detailed his professional aspirations, telling his future employer that he was “a serious intellectual,” despite not having finished his undergraduate degree. “It’s my hope to make radio a career at some point,” Hannity then wrote. “[I have] developed a lot of discipline and good-working habits.”
He must’ve said something right because the 27-year-old got the gig and took to the air on Tuesday mornings at 9 a.m. It was at the station in the solidly liberal town that Hannity started to garner attention, but it wasn’t for the most heartwarming of reasons.
Hannity started to cast himself as a controversial figure, and lost his radio job as a result
Paul Zimmerman/Getty Images
So at this point in his career, Sean Hannity worked in the home improvement arena and had an unpaid position at a Santa Barbara radio station — not exactly bringing home the bacon, but things were looking up, right? Not exactly. As noted by The Washington Post, Hannity started to make some seriously offensive comments while on the air (not entirely surprising given his m.o.) and was soon under pressure from the station. On the air he claimed, “Contrary to what we hear in the general media, you can get AIDS from saliva, from tears. . . . They won’t let you say it’s a gay disease.” He also engaged in a back-and-forth with a guest who made derogatory and false claims about how AIDS is spread.
During an appearance on the “Shoot This Now” podcast, Hannity reflected on those early days hitting the airwaves (via The Wrap). “Almost 30 years ago when I was starting out in radio in my 20s, I interviewed a controversial guest who made several incendiary comments. I was young and stupid with no clue how to do a show,” Hannity later stated about the incidents. “I freely admit the comments in my 20s were ignorant and embarrassing.” The young radio host lost his job at the station as a result of his on-air behavior and went to the ACLU to help him in the case. Ultimately, he was offered his job back but he turned it down.
During an appearance on the “Shoot This Now” podcast, Hannity reflected on those early days hitting the airwaves (via The Wrap). “Almost 30 years ago when I was starting out in radio in my 20s, I interviewed a controversial guest who made several incendiary comments. I was young and stupid with no clue how to do a show,” Hannity later stated about the incidents. “I freely admit the comments in my 20s were ignorant and embarrassing.”
The young radio host lost his job at the station as a result of his on-air behavior and went to the ACLU to help him in the case. Ultimately, he was offered his job back but he turned it down.
The radio host accepted a low-ball offer to be on the air in Alabama
Rob Kim/Getty Images
While Sean Hannity worked an unpaid radio gig in California, he certainly caught people’s attention. As a result, his name spread a bit like a brush fire and made it all the way to Alabama, where radio guru Bill Dunnavent was searching for on-air talent. It was the 1990s, the Fairness Doctrine – establishing balanced political perspectives on radio and television news — had been killed, and Dunnavent was wading into a new swamp: “highly opinionated political talk radio,” as detailed by The Washington Post. More than 50 people applied for the position at Alabama’s WVNN, and one stood out among the others: Hannity.
“I hired Sean because he had enough guts to stand up for his convictions and because he sounded different from everybody else in our area,” Dunnavent admitted, of both Hannity’s on-air style and his existing New York accent. The young pundit’s new boss gave him the ground rules: “We don’t talk about religion, and we don’t talk about abortion,” and paid him $19,000 a year. Not great, but still better than being unpaid — we can all agree on something.
“I hired Sean because he had enough guts to stand up for his convictions and because he sounded different from everybody else in our area,” Dunnavent admitted, of both Hannity’s on-air style and his existing New York accent. The young pundit’s new boss gave him the ground rules: “We don’t talk about religion, and we don’t talk about abortion,” and paid him $19,000 a year. Not great, but still better than being unpaid — we can all agree on something.
After being encouraged to apply to the new network by his agent, Hannity found himself in no other place than back in New York, sitting in Ailes’ office. “Roger goes, ‘Great, you’re going to do a debate show,’” Hannity recalled to The Times. “And that’s all it took. My life changed forever.”
While it’s unknown how much money Hannity was offered in those early days, he was offered the 9 p.m. on-air vacancy, with the intention that he and an unchosen co-host would debate the news of the day. What a gig!
The conservative host was balanced out by Alan Colmes but later took on a starring solo role
Jason Kempin/Getty Images
As explained by The New York Times, Colmes’ gig almost went to Joe Conason, a talented investigative journalist who could certainly hold his own. But according to Patrick Halpin, who became a common face on the show, the network was looking for someone much weaker than the bulldozer Hannity.
“I came to the conclusion that Roger [Ailes] wanted a handsome, smart conservative on one side and a nerdy liberal on the other,” Halpin said, shortly after Colmes passed away in 2017. “Alan, God rest his soul, was smart and knowledgeable, but he wasn’t Joe, who would’ve been too strong for Hannity.” “Hannity & Colmes” lasted from 1996 until January 2009, becoming just “Hannity” from there on out.
Sean Hannity’s radio show makes up a good chunk of his change
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
From airing on the likes of Apple Podcasts, Los Angeles’ KROQ radio station, iHeart radio, Audacy, and countless more, the show — and the host — clearly have adoring fans. As noted by Audacy, in fact, “The Sean Hannity Show” draws in about 13.5 million listeners every week, and Hannity himself has won three Radio & Records National Talk Show Host of The Year awards.
The host scored a huge book deal with Simon & Schuster in 2019
Leonard Zhukovsky/Shutterstock
Flash forward to August 2020, and Hannity’s book titled “Live Free Or Die: America (and the World) on the Brink,” was released. But here’s the question: Was Simon and & Schuster behind the publication? As it turns out, the answer is a resounding yes. The publishing company’s imprint, Threshold Editions, published Hannity’s 2020 release, calling his previous claim about not pursuing a book deal into question.
Sean Hannity purchased a New York home with his then-wife in 2003
The radio host started building a real estate empire in 2013
Sean Hannity and his wife divorced in 2020
So what did the divorce do to Hannity’s overall net worth? Honestly, not much, from what we can tell. TV Star Bio noted that Rhodes, a journalist, has a net worth of $5 million on her own. Cheat Sheet further detailed that given the couple’s children were over the age of 18 when they divorced, no child support was to be expected.
A fellow radio host asserted that Sean Hannity could lose millions if he’s not careful
Throughout the course of his life, Sean Hannity transformed from a kid born into a modest family to an unpaid (and fired) radio host, to a multi-millionaire collecting $45 million a year. To say that his financial growth is impressive is an understatement, but not everyone feels as though the host’s finances are secure. Chip Franklin, a fellow radio host, crossed paths with Hannity in New York, as they were both conservative-pushing pundits. As he told The Washington Post, Franklin is now a liberal supporter and has moved the political ideology of his show accordingly, but the same honesty — in his opinion — can’t be said about Hannity.
“I know Hannity knew that Obama was born in the United States. I know Hannity has the same facts we all do about the crowd size at the inauguration or the Russian connection,” Franklin said of Hannity’s most well-known on-air fibs. “I know that because I knew him in New York and he was always a conservative, but not like this.” In Franklin’s perspective, Hannity “got in this boat” of conservative media and failed to realize how powerful “the current was.” He continued, saying, “People adore him now. Nobody around him wants him to change. So he doubles down. He can’t go against his audience because he’ll lose millions of dollars.”
“I know Hannity knew that Obama was born in the United States. I know Hannity has the same facts we all do about the crowd size at the inauguration or the Russian connection,” Franklin said of Hannity’s most well-known on-air fibs. “I know that because I knew him in New York and he was always a conservative, but not like this.”
In Franklin’s perspective, Hannity “got in this boat” of conservative media and failed to realize how powerful “the current was.” He continued, saying, “People adore him now. Nobody around him wants him to change. So he doubles down. He can’t go against his audience because he’ll lose millions of dollars.”
