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REACH: 12.5 million-plus listeners per week via 500
radio stations and the Armed Forces Radio Network. His
flagship radio station is WABC in New York City. He is co-host
of Fox News Channel’s second-highest-rated show, Hannity &
Colmes, reaching 2 million viewers, and has written several
best-selling books.
FAVORITE TOPIC: Morality.
MOST CONTROVERSIAL MOMENT: While a local host, he
told listeners that another on-air person at the station was a
lesbian whose child by in-vitro fertilization was a
“turkey-baster baby.” Hannity told her on air: “I feel sorry
for your child.”
PET PHRASE(S): “You’re a great American.”
WEB SITE: http://www.hannity.com/
Hannity is the fastest-rising star in the history of talk
radio. He has attracted the second-largest radio audience in
only five years of syndication. But he stood on giant
shoulders to get there: The feisty Irish-American was first
heard by most Americans during his many appearances as a guest
host on Limbaugh’s show.
Sean Patrick Hannity attended New York University and
Adelphi University, dropping out of both without a degree.
Hard-working and entrepreneurial, in 1982 he established his
own successful house-painting business in Rhode Island. He
moved to Santa Barbara, Calif., to work in construction.
After a stint at KCSB, the campus radio station at the
University of California-Santa Barbara, Hannity astutely
bought an ad in a radio industry journal describing himself as
“the most talked about college radio host in America.” This
won him an on-air job in Huntsville, Ala., which was his
steppingstone to a slot in Atlanta.
When Fox News Channel was forming three years later, Roger
Ailes picked Hannity to be the conservative half of the show
now called Hannity & Colmes. This brought Hannity back to
New York City.
Hannity is a talk host with a pugilistic demeanor who
polarizes issues into contests between good guys in white hats
and bad guys in black. His passion and energy make him a
powerful and attractive cheerleader for conservative listeners
seeking certitude, emotional catharsis, and a gladiatorial
champion for their political beliefs.
Hannity’s radio show began nationwide syndication one day
before the 9/11 terrorist attacks. | 
