T. J. Holmes
Encyclopedia
Loutelious Ann Holmes Jr., better known as T. J. Holmes (born August 19, 1977) is an anchor on the weekend edition of CNN Newsroom
, CNN Saturday Morning, and CNN Sunday Morning. Holmes joined CNN in October 2006. At one time, his co-anchor on CNN Newsroom was Betty Nguyen
.
. He was given the nickname "T. J.", short for "Telious Jr."
He graduated from the University of Arkansas
with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism.
, where he started as a producer, eventually becoming a general assignment reporter and then a weekend anchor and reporter.
Holmes then served as a weekend anchor and reporter for KTHV-TV in Little Rock, Arkansas
.
He was next an anchor for the San Jose
NBC
affiliate KNTV
, NBC11. As an anchor and reporter for the station, Holmes served as a go-to correspondent for live reports across the Bay Area and California
and traveled to Greece
to cover the 2004 summer Olympics.
, India
; the Georgia
-Russia
n conflict in 2008; the Virginia Tech shooting in Blacksburg
, Virginia
; the terrorist attacks at Scotland
's Glasgow Airport
in 2007; as well as the execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
in 2006.
He has also reported on scene during the US Airways Flight 1549
splash landing in the Hudson River
in New York City in 2009; Pope Benedict XVI
's first visit to the United States
in 2008 by anchoring live from a Mass the Pope gave at Yankee Stadium
; a freak downtown tornado in Atlanta, Georgia
in 2008; and he reported live from Sen. Barack Obama
and Sen. John McCain
's first presidential debate.
Holmes often subbed for Rick Sanchez
, who hosted a show on CNN utilizing many different online social networking sites, including Facebook
, Myspace
and Twitter
.
He has also spent time volunteering in Costa Rica
.
Holmes hosted the National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC) Awards ceremony in April 2009.
He portrayed one of the characters in the animated film Kasha and the Zulu King, a 2009 animated film project at Atlanta University Center
that featured various Atlanta-area celebrities.
, better known as "Chilli" from the band TLC
. He was married a second time, in March 2010, to Marilee Fiebig, an Atlanta-area attorney.
In 2008, for CNN's Black in America
special, Holmes wrote about his personal experiences with racism for the Anderson Cooper 360 blog, writing:
He also recounted a story about an incident at a Bay Area car wash when he owned what he described as a large, white SUV with chrome wheels and tinted windows:
CNN Newsroom
CNN Newsroom is an American news program on CNN/US.Broadcasting throughout the week, Newsroom features live and taped news reports, in addition to analysis from experts on the issues being covered, and headlines throughout each hour. The program tends to focus on softer news than their hard news...
, CNN Saturday Morning, and CNN Sunday Morning. Holmes joined CNN in October 2006. At one time, his co-anchor on CNN Newsroom was Betty Nguyen
Betty Nguyen
Betty Nguyen is an American news anchor with CBS News. Nguyen joined CBS News on March 11, 2010. She anchors the The CBS Morning News and is a correspondent for The Early Show. -Life and career:...
.
Early life
Holmes was born in West Memphis, ArkansasArkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
. He was given the nickname "T. J.", short for "Telious Jr."
He graduated from the University of Arkansas
University of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...
with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism.
Pre-CNN career
Holmes began his career at KSNF-TV in Joplin, MissouriJoplin, Missouri
Joplin is a city in southern Jasper County and northern Newton County in the southwestern corner of the US state of Missouri. Joplin is the largest city in Jasper County, though it is not the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 50,150...
, where he started as a producer, eventually becoming a general assignment reporter and then a weekend anchor and reporter.
Holmes then served as a weekend anchor and reporter for KTHV-TV in Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
.
He was next an anchor for the San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliate KNTV
KNTV
KNTV, channel 11, is the NBC owned-and-operated television station in the Bay Area market. It is licensed to San Jose, with its transmitter located on San Bruno Mountain, just south of San Francisco. It shares facilities in San Jose with NBC Universal sister station KSTS and CNBC's Silicon...
, NBC11. As an anchor and reporter for the station, Holmes served as a go-to correspondent for live reports across the Bay Area and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and traveled to Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
to cover the 2004 summer Olympics.
CNN
Holmes joined CNN in October 2006. As a CNN anchor, Holmes has reported many breaking news stories including the terrorist attacks on MumbaiMumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
; the Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
-Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n conflict in 2008; the Virginia Tech shooting in Blacksburg
Blacksburg
Blacksburg may refer to:*Blacksburg, South Carolina*Blacksburg, Virginia...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
; the terrorist attacks at Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
's Glasgow Airport
Glasgow Airport
Glasgow Airport may refer to:*Glasgow International Airport, in Renfrewshire, the primary airport serving Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom.*Glasgow Airport , also known as Wokal Field, in Glasgow, Montana, United States.It may also refer to:...
in 2007; as well as the execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
in 2006.
He has also reported on scene during the US Airways Flight 1549
US Airways Flight 1549
US Airways Flight 1549 was US Airways' scheduled domestic commercial passenger flight from LaGuardia Airport in New York City to Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, Charlotte, North Carolina...
splash landing in the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
in New York City in 2009; Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
's first visit to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 2008 by anchoring live from a Mass the Pope gave at Yankee Stadium
Yankee Stadium
Yankee Stadium was a stadium located in The Bronx in New York City, New York. It was the home ballpark of the New York Yankees from 1923 to 1973 and from 1976 to 2008. The stadium hosted 6,581 Yankees regular season home games during its 85-year history. It was also the former home of the New York...
; a freak downtown tornado in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
in 2008; and he reported live from Sen. Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
and Sen. John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
's first presidential debate.
Holmes often subbed for Rick Sanchez
Rick Sanchez
Ricardo León "Rick" Sánchez de Reinaldo , known professionally as Rick Sanchez, is a Cuban-American journalist, author and former TV news anchor...
, who hosted a show on CNN utilizing many different online social networking sites, including Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
, Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
and Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
.
Other activities
Holmes was part of the Leon H. Sullivan Summit, a biannual gathering of world leaders, in 2008 and visited the United Republic of Tanzania. In the African country, he visited orphanages and impoverished communities. Many of these visits were reported on by CNN.He has also spent time volunteering in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
.
Holmes hosted the National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC) Awards ceremony in April 2009.
He portrayed one of the characters in the animated film Kasha and the Zulu King, a 2009 animated film project at Atlanta University Center
Atlanta University Center
The Atlanta University Center Consortium is the largest contiguous consortium of African Americans in higher education in the United States. The center consists of four historically black colleges and universities in southwest Atlanta, Georgia...
that featured various Atlanta-area celebrities.
Personal life
Holmes was married to his college sweetheart, Amy Ferson; the two divorced in 2007. They have one teenage daughter together. In 2007, he briefly dated singer Rozonda ThomasRozonda Thomas
Rozonda Ocelean Thomas , best known by her stage name Chilli, is a four-time Grammy Award–winning American R&B singer and actress who rose to fame as one third of the successful R&B/Hip-Hop/Pop girl group TLC.-Early life:...
, better known as "Chilli" from the band TLC
TLC (band)
TLC is an American musical trio whose repertoire spanned R&B, hip-hop, soul, funk, and new jack swing. Originally consisting of singer Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, rapper-singer Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and singer Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas it found success in the 1990s while also enduring a series of spats...
. He was married a second time, in March 2010, to Marilee Fiebig, an Atlanta-area attorney.
In 2008, for CNN's Black in America
Black in America
Black In America is a multi-part series of documentaries hosted by reporter Soledad O'Brien on CNN. The series is about various issues regarding blacks which includes panel discussions on issues facing the black community, and a look at the culture of black families in America, men and women.It...
special, Holmes wrote about his personal experiences with racism for the Anderson Cooper 360 blog, writing:
"I haven’t come in contact with a lot of blatant racism in my life. Yes, I’ve been called the N-word. To be honest, it never really upset me because as soon as that word comes out of someone’s mouth, I’m pretty sure that I’ve won the argument. That person has just confirmed how ignorant they are.
I don’t necessarily consider most people racist. I have, however, seen a lot of racial bias. What I mean by that is people don’t hate me because of the color of my skin, but they simply don’t see me as an equal. Some may say that by not seeing me as an equal, that’s the very definition of racism. Rather, I believe people have so many misconceptions and preconceived notions about black peopleBlack peopleThe term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
. They make assumptions based on the color of my skin."
He also recounted a story about an incident at a Bay Area car wash when he owned what he described as a large, white SUV with chrome wheels and tinted windows:
"One day a man came over to me as I was washing my truck and said, “Man, I just gotta know. What do you guys do to have nice cars like that?”
He was a nice enough guy and wasn’t really nasty when he asked the question. He truly seemed puzzled about how a young, black man could be driving such a nice car. He went on to ask me if I played for the San Francisco 49ers. Again, I’m 5′11″ and 165 lbs. No, I don’t play for the 49ers.
The guy’s first thought at seeing a young, black man in a nice car was not that I could have gotten it through education and hard work. That is what I mean by bias."
External links
- T. J. Holmes profile at CNN.com
- A March 2007 T.J. Holmes Interview with My Urban Report