Some journalists chase the spotlight. Brit Hume built his entire reputation on the opposite instinct: showing up, doing the work, and letting the facts carry the story. Across a career spanning more than six decades, he rose from reporting for a small-town newspaper to becoming the anchor who played a central role in building Fox News’ political coverage, all while living with a personal tragedy that left a lasting mark on his life.
Quick Bio: Brit Hume at a Glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Alexander Britton Hume |
| Born | June 22, 1943 |
| Birthplace | Washington, D.C. |
| Age (as of 2026) | 82 or 83, depending on the current month |
| Parents | George Graham Hume and Virginia Powell (née Minnigerode) Hume |
| High School | St. Albans School, Washington, D.C. (attended alongside future Vice President Al Gore) |
| College | University of Virginia, Bachelor’s degree in English, graduated 1965 |
| Early Career | Newspaper reporter, The Hartford Times and Baltimore Evening Sun; also United Press International |
| ABC News Career | 1973–1996, including Chief White House Correspondent (1989–1996) |
| Fox News Role | Joined December 1996 as managing editor and chief Washington correspondent |
| Signature Show | Host of “Special Report with Brit Hume,” 1996–2008 |
| Later Role | Senior political analyst and regular panelist on “Fox News Sunday” |
| Brief Anchor Role | Interim host of “On the Record,” September to November 2016 |
| Major Award | Emmy Award, 1991, for Gulf War coverage |
| Other Honor | 2003 Sol Taishoff Award for Excellence in Broadcast Journalism |
| Books Written | “Death and the Mines” (1971) and “Inside Story” (1974) |
| First Marriage | Clare Jacobs Stoner (divorced) |
| Children From First Marriage | Sandy and Virginia |
| Second Marriage | Kim Schiller Hume, married June 1, 1993 |
| Son’s Death | Sandy Hume, journalist, died by suicide in February 1998 at age 28 |
Growing Up in the Capital
Alexander Britton Hume, better known as Brit Hume, was born in Washington, D.C., on June 22, 1943. His parents were George Graham Hume and Virginia Powell Hume, and growing up right in the nation’s capital placed him close to the exact world of politics and government he’d spend his entire career covering.
He attended St. Albans School in Washington, a respected private school. Interestingly, he attended alongside a young Al Gore, who would later become Vice President of the United States, someone Hume would go on to cover professionally decades later.
Studying English at the University of Virginia
Hume pursued his college education at the University of Virginia, earning a Bachelor’s degree in English in 1965. That’s a notably different academic background than many journalists who study communications or political science directly.
A strong English background often shapes how someone writes and structures a story, and Hume’s decades of clear, direct reporting suggest that early training stuck with him throughout his career.
Starting at the Bottom, the Old-Fashioned Way
Before television ever entered the picture, Hume built his foundation as a newspaper reporter. He worked for The Hartford Times and the Baltimore Evening Sun, along with a stint at United Press International, one of the major wire services of that era.
This kind of grinding, deadline-driven newspaper work builds real reporting instincts, the kind that come from constantly chasing facts and confirming details under pressure, long before any camera gets involved.
Joining ABC News
In 1973, Hume joined ABC News as a consultant for the network’s documentary division. By 1976, he’d been named a Washington correspondent, and the following year, he was promoted to Capitol Hill correspondent, covering Congress until 1988.
That’s over a decade spent specifically embedded in the day-to-day workings of Congress, giving him an unusually deep, direct understanding of how legislative politics actually functions behind the scenes.
Becoming ABC’s Chief White House Correspondent
From 1989 through 1996, Hume served as ABC News’ chief White House correspondent, contributing regularly to “World News Tonight with Peter Jennings.” He also filed reports for “Nightline” and “This Week,” two of the network’s most respected news programs.
Over his full 23 years at ABC News, Hume built a reputation as a steady, detail-oriented reporter, someone trusted enough to be placed at the very center of American political coverage for the better part of a decade.
Winning an Emmy for War Coverage
In 1991, Hume received an Emmy Award for his coverage of the Gulf War. War coverage carries genuine risk and demands rapid, accurate reporting under intense pressure, and earning recognition at that level reflects serious professional respect from his peers.
He was also twice named “The Best in the Business” by the American Journalism Review specifically for his White House coverage, further cementing his reputation during the ABC years.
Writing Books Alongside Reporting
Beyond daily journalism, Hume authored two books: “Death and the Mines,” published in 1971, and “Inside Story,” published in 1974. He’s also credited as a writer on “The Killing Ground,” a 1979 documentary that received an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Feature.
That’s a genuinely broad body of work for a working journalist, showing an interest in longer-form storytelling beyond the daily news cycle.
The Move to Fox News
In December 1996, Hume made a significant career shift, joining the newly launched Fox News Channel as managing editor and chief Washington correspondent. Fox News was still a genuinely new operation at that point, and Hume became one of the key figures helping shape its early political coverage.
He took on responsibility for overseeing news content out of Fox’s Washington, D.C. bureau, a role that placed him at the center of the network’s political operation from nearly the very beginning.
Anchoring Special Report for Over a Decade
Hume became the host of “Special Report with Brit Hume,” a one-hour political news program that grew into the highest-rated political show on cable television during his tenure. He anchored the program from 1996 until stepping down in December 2008, more than ten years at the helm.
He also anchored the network’s coverage of every presidential and congressional election from 1997 through 2008, making him a central figure in how Fox News covered American elections during that entire stretch.
Stepping Back, But Not Away
After leaving the anchor chair in 2008, Hume didn’t retire from journalism. He transitioned into the role of senior political analyst for Fox News, a position that let him continue contributing political analysis without the daily demands of anchoring a full broadcast.
He also became a regular panelist on “Fox News Sunday,” the network’s weekly public affairs program, continuing to weigh in on major political developments well into his later career.
A Brief Return to Anchoring in 2016
In September 2016, Hume stepped in as interim host of “On the Record,” airing weekdays at 7 p.m. ET, continuing through the 2016 presidential election that November. This gave him one more direct anchoring role, decades after his original run on “Special Report” had ended.
That kind of willingness to step back into a demanding daily anchor role, even briefly, during his seventies, speaks to a genuine, lasting commitment to the work itself.
A First Marriage and a Devastating Loss
Hume’s first marriage was to Clare Jacobs Stoner, and together they had two children: Sandy and Virginia. That marriage eventually ended in divorce.
Their son, Alexander “Sandy” Hume Jr., followed his father into journalism, working as a reporter for The Hill newspaper in Washington, D.C. In 1997, Sandy broke a major political story about an aborted attempt by several Republican congressmen to replace Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, a genuinely significant scoop that made real waves in Washington political circles.
Sandy Hume’s Death
In February 1998, at just 28 years old, Sandy Hume died by suicide. Sources place the date as either February 22 or February 23, 1998, a minor discrepancy that doesn’t change the devastating outcome itself.
This is a genuinely difficult topic, and this article isn’t going to detail the specific circumstances beyond what’s necessary for an honest account, both out of respect for Sandy Hume’s memory and because reproducing that kind of specific detail serves no real purpose here. What matters is that a young, talented journalist’s life ended far too soon, and it left a permanent mark on his father.
How Brit Hume Responded to That Loss
In the years following his son’s death, Hume has spoken publicly about how the tragedy reshaped his life. He’s described committing his life to Jesus Christ “in a way that was very meaningful” to him in the aftermath, saying that before Sandy’s death, he considered himself “kind of a nominal Christian for the longest time.”
Upon stepping down from “Special Report” in 2008, he reflected further, saying, “I want to pursue my faith more ardently than I have done… When my son died, I came to Christ in a way that was very meaningful to me.” That’s a genuinely candid public reflection from someone not typically known for discussing his personal life in depth.
A Lasting Tribute to Sandy Hume
Sandy Hume’s memory lives on through the National Press Club’s annual Sandy Hume Memorial Award for Excellence in Political Journalism, an honor given specifically in recognition of his work and legacy as a young political reporter.
That kind of ongoing tribute, still awarded decades later, reflects how significant Sandy’s brief but impactful career had already become within Washington journalism circles before his death.
Finding Love Again
Hume eventually remarried, this time to Kim Schiller, on June 1, 1993, on the Big Island of Hawaii. Kim went on to become a serious journalist in her own right, serving as Fox News’ vice president and Washington bureau chief.
Having two working journalists at the same network, both in senior roles, is a genuinely unusual professional dynamic, and the couple has remained together for over three decades since their wedding.
Life Away From the Cameras
Beyond Washington, Hume and his family have had connections to a country home in Fauquier County, Virginia, in a small town called Hume, reportedly named after one of his own ancestors. According to property records, the home changed ownership in 2014.
That kind of quiet, rural retreat, away from the constant churn of Washington political coverage, suggests someone who valued having a genuine escape from the demands of a decades-long career in political journalism.
A Word of Caution About One Serious Claim
During research for this article, one lower-quality source made a specific claim that Hume had an affair with fellow Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, describing it as something that “almost derailed his relationship” with his wife. This claim appeared in exactly one source and was not corroborated by any other reliable outlet, including Kelly’s own memoir references found elsewhere in mainstream coverage.
Given how serious and potentially damaging this kind of claim is, and the complete lack of independent confirmation, this article treats it as unverified and does not present it as an established fact about either individual.
A Note on a Clear Factual Error
One additional source mistakenly claimed Sandy Hume’s death occurred in 1988 rather than 1998. This is contradicted by every other reliable source reviewed for this article, including Wikipedia, Find a Grave records, and contemporary journalism about the case, all of which consistently confirm February 1998 as the correct date. This article treats 1998 as the accurate year.
Decades of Recognition
Across his long career, Hume received numerous honors beyond his Emmy Award, including the 2003 Sol Taishoff Award for Excellence in Broadcast Journalism from the National Press Foundation. These kinds of awards, given by respected journalism institutions, reflect sustained, peer-recognized excellence rather than a single standout moment.
That combination of longevity and consistent recognition is relatively rare in an industry where careers often burn brightly and then fade quickly.
Why His Career Still Matters
Brit Hume’s career spans a genuinely unique stretch of American media history. He started in an era of print newspapers and wire services, moved through the height of network television news at ABC, and then helped build one of cable news’ most influential political operations from its earliest days.
Few working journalists can claim that kind of continuous, multi-decade presence across so many different eras of how Americans actually get their news.
Final Words
Brit Hume’s story is really a story about consistency across an enormous amount of change. He started as a young newspaper reporter in an era of typewriters and wire copy, and he ended up helping shape political television coverage well into the smartphone era, decades later.
Along the way, he carried a genuinely devastating personal loss, the death of his son Sandy, and chose to speak about it honestly rather than keep it hidden. That kind of openness, paired with six decades of steady, respected reporting, is what makes his career worth understanding in full, not just as a list of job titles, but as a genuinely human story.
FAQ About Brit Hume
Q1. How old is Brit Hume?
Born on June 22, 1943, he would be either 82 or 83 years old in 2026, depending on the time of year.
Q2. What is Brit Hume’s real name?
His full name is Alexander Britton Hume. “Brit” is a shortened version of his middle name.
Q3. Where did Brit Hume go to school?
He attended St. Albans School in Washington, D.C., alongside future Vice President Al Gore, and later earned a Bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Virginia in 1965.
Q4. What was Brit Hume’s career before television?
He started as a newspaper reporter for The Hartford Times and the Baltimore Evening Sun, and also worked for United Press International.
Q5. How long did Brit Hume work at ABC News?
He worked there for 23 years, from 1973 to 1996, including serving as chief White House correspondent from 1989 to 1996.
Q6. When did Brit Hume join Fox News?
He joined in December 1996 as managing editor and chief Washington correspondent, shortly after the network launched.
Q7. What show made Brit Hume famous at Fox News?
He hosted “Special Report with Brit Hume” from 1996 to 2008, which became the highest-rated political program on cable television during his tenure.
Q8. Is Brit Hume still working at Fox News?
Yes, he currently serves as a senior political analyst and regular panelist on “Fox News Sunday.”
Q9. Did Brit Hume win any major awards?
Yes, he won an Emmy Award in 1991 for his coverage of the Gulf War and received the 2003 Sol Taishoff Award for Excellence in Broadcast Journalism.
Q10. Was Brit Hume married more than once?
Yes, he was previously married to Clare Jacobs Stoner, with whom he had two children. He later married Kim Schiller Hume on June 1, 1993.
Q11. What happened to Brit Hume’s son?
His son, Sandy Hume, a journalist for The Hill, died by suicide in February 1998 at age 28.
Q12. How did Brit Hume respond to his son’s death?
He has said he committed his life to Christianity in a deeply meaningful way following his son’s death, describing it as a turning point in his personal faith.
Q13. What books has Brit Hume written?
He authored “Death and the Mines” (1971) and “Inside Story” (1974), and contributed to the 1979 documentary “The Killing Ground.”
Q14. Is there a memorial award named after Brit Hume’s son?
Yes, the National Press Club presents the annual Sandy Hume Memorial Award for Excellence in Political Journalism in his honor.
Q15. What is Brit Hume’s current role at Fox News?
He serves as senior political analyst, contributing to major political coverage and appearing regularly on “Fox News Sunday.”
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