Bill Hemmer | $3 Million

Bill Hemmer credits his time as a disc jockey in his high school for jump-starting his love for broadcasting. He studied Broadcast Journalism at the Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and then launched his radio career when he started interning for a few radio stations, such as WOXY-FM, WMUB-FM, and Cincinnati’s NBC affiliate. He also served as the weekend sports anchor at WCPO-TV.

Hemmer prepared tapes and wrote dispatches during his year-long travels through Israel, Vietnam, Nepal, India, China, Egypt, and Eastern Europe, and this project was called Bill’s Excellent Adventure. He then landed a position at the International Headquarters of CNN, eventually becoming a host of various programs of the network. One of his most memorable stints was his coverage of the 1996 Olympics bombing in Atlanta. Hemmer also played an important role during the 2016 and 2020 elections, monitoring FNC’s “Billboard.”