*Photo Credit: Lance Frank, CC BY-SA 4.0
Margaret Brennan
Moderator of CBS News’ Face The Nation with Margaret Brennan & CBS News’ Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent
SPEAKER FEE RANGE: $38,000–$81,000 [FEE NOTE]
TRAVELS FROM: District of Columbia
• Goes in depth on pressing issues with the biggest names in politics and media each week on Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan
• Second-ever female host of the flagship, 65-year-old Sunday show
• Two decades experience covering politics, international affairs, global markets, and the White House for CBS, CNBC, and Bloomberg
• Delivers a fact-based, balanced look at the news driving Washington paired with global stories and insights that light up emerging global trends
• Second-ever female host of the flagship, 65-year-old Sunday show
• Two decades experience covering politics, international affairs, global markets, and the White House for CBS, CNBC, and Bloomberg
• Delivers a fact-based, balanced look at the news driving Washington paired with global stories and insights that light up emerging global trends
Margaret Brennan is moderator of CBS News’ premier Sunday public affairs program Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan. The second-ever woman to host the venerable CBS News broadcast, she also serves as the network’s chief foreign affairs correspondent based in Washington, D.C. and contributes to all broadcasts and platforms.
Brennan’s nuanced coverage on pressing issues and news-making interviews have earned her a reputation as a tough but fair questioner with a range of expertise that includes domestic politics, foreign affairs, national security, and economic news. She delivers a captivating view of the biggest stories driving our 24-hour news cycle and how they impact audiences’ lives. Since joining CBS News, Brennan has conducted numerous interviews with world leaders, politicians, policy makers, and newsmakers including Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump, U.K Prime Minister Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The list also includes many presidential hopefuls as well as heads of state in Iraq and South Korea.
Brennan has continued Face the Nation’s legacy as America’s premier Sunday morning public affairs program, helping propel it to be the most watched program in its category. Her interviews with leaders, scientists, and newsmakers at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic earned Face the Nation two Emmy Award nominations – one for outstanding news analysis and the second for coverage of the tension between the U.S. and Iran – as well as first place in the National Headliner Awards, with the judges noting “this coverage was exactly what the country needed at the time.” Face the Nation also earned the Wilbur Award for its 2019 feature on bipartisanship. Brennan previously won an Emmy Award for her Face the Nation interview with the father of a student killed in the Parkland High School shooting tragedy.
Brennan first joined CBS News in 2012 and has held roles including State Department and White House Correspondent. She has broken stories including the news that members of the Trump Administration were discussing invoking the 25th amendment following the January 6th siege of the U.S. Capitol. She has also covered historic moments, such as the landmark nuclear deal with Iran, restoration of diplomatic ties with Cuba, the standoff with North Korea, the conflict in Ukraine, and the accord to transfer control of Syria’s chemical weapons.
Bringing a wealth of reporting experience to the Face the Nation moderator chair that sets her and the broadcast apart, Brennan has been reporting on politics, international affairs, and global markets since 2002. Prior to CBS News, she anchored and reported for Bloomberg Television around the globe. Before that, she was a correspondent at CNBC with a focus on the consumer during the 2008 financial crisis. She also contributed to various NBC News programs. Brennan began her career as an award-winning producer for CNBC’s Wall Street Week with Louis Rukeyser.
Brennan is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Gridiron Club, and sits on the advisory board for the University of Virginia School of Politics and the Smurfit School of Business.
She graduated with highest distinction from the University of Virginia in 2002, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in foreign affairs and Middle East studies with a minor in Arabic. As a Fulbright-Hays Scholar, she studied Arabic at Yarmouk University in Irbid, Jordan. She is also the recipient of an honorary doctor of letters degree from Niagara University.
Brennan resides in Washington, D.C. with her husband Yado Yakub and their two sons.
Brennan’s nuanced coverage on pressing issues and news-making interviews have earned her a reputation as a tough but fair questioner with a range of expertise that includes domestic politics, foreign affairs, national security, and economic news. She delivers a captivating view of the biggest stories driving our 24-hour news cycle and how they impact audiences’ lives. Since joining CBS News, Brennan has conducted numerous interviews with world leaders, politicians, policy makers, and newsmakers including Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump, U.K Prime Minister Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The list also includes many presidential hopefuls as well as heads of state in Iraq and South Korea.
Brennan has continued Face the Nation’s legacy as America’s premier Sunday morning public affairs program, helping propel it to be the most watched program in its category. Her interviews with leaders, scientists, and newsmakers at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic earned Face the Nation two Emmy Award nominations – one for outstanding news analysis and the second for coverage of the tension between the U.S. and Iran – as well as first place in the National Headliner Awards, with the judges noting “this coverage was exactly what the country needed at the time.” Face the Nation also earned the Wilbur Award for its 2019 feature on bipartisanship. Brennan previously won an Emmy Award for her Face the Nation interview with the father of a student killed in the Parkland High School shooting tragedy.
Brennan first joined CBS News in 2012 and has held roles including State Department and White House Correspondent. She has broken stories including the news that members of the Trump Administration were discussing invoking the 25th amendment following the January 6th siege of the U.S. Capitol. She has also covered historic moments, such as the landmark nuclear deal with Iran, restoration of diplomatic ties with Cuba, the standoff with North Korea, the conflict in Ukraine, and the accord to transfer control of Syria’s chemical weapons.
Bringing a wealth of reporting experience to the Face the Nation moderator chair that sets her and the broadcast apart, Brennan has been reporting on politics, international affairs, and global markets since 2002. Prior to CBS News, she anchored and reported for Bloomberg Television around the globe. Before that, she was a correspondent at CNBC with a focus on the consumer during the 2008 financial crisis. She also contributed to various NBC News programs. Brennan began her career as an award-winning producer for CNBC’s Wall Street Week with Louis Rukeyser.
Brennan is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Gridiron Club, and sits on the advisory board for the University of Virginia School of Politics and the Smurfit School of Business.
She graduated with highest distinction from the University of Virginia in 2002, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in foreign affairs and Middle East studies with a minor in Arabic. As a Fulbright-Hays Scholar, she studied Arabic at Yarmouk University in Irbid, Jordan. She is also the recipient of an honorary doctor of letters degree from Niagara University.
Brennan resides in Washington, D.C. with her husband Yado Yakub and their two sons.
Political Outlook & News Of The Day
Margaret Brennan draws on her extensive experience as a moderator and journalist to provide audiences with a fast-paced, captivating overview of the biggest stories driving our 24-hour news cycle and how they’ll play out in the coming months and years. Intent at bridging the gap between the local and the global, Brennan draws parallels between domestic and foreign stories. Focused on providing only fact and no opinion, Brennan helps audiences make connections between the stories of the day and the impact they’ll have on their individual lives without taking sides. Brennan leaves audiences feeling smarter and with a better grasp of the breaking news shaping Washington, our country, and the world.
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