Jim Acosta

Early life and education

At the age of 11, Acosta's father arrived as a refugee from Cuba three weeks prior to the Cuban Missile Crisis; and was raised in Virginia. Acosta graduated from Annandale High School, a public high school in Annandale, Virginia, in 1989. In 1993, he earned a bachelor's degree in Mass Communication, with a minor in Political Science, from James Madison University. While in school, Acosta volunteered for WXJM, the student-run radio station, and also worked as a reporter at WSVA, a local radio station.

Professional career

Acosta began his professional career in radio, and his first job was with WMAL in Washington, D.C.. In 1994, Acosta left WMAL and entered television, working for WTTG-TV as a desk assistant. In 1995, Acosta moved in front of the camera, becoming a reporter and substitute anchor at WBIR-TV in Knoxville, Tennessee, and remained in that job until 1998.

From 1998 until 2000, Acosta worked as a reporter for KTVT-TV in Dallas. From 2000 until 2001, Acosta was a reporter for WBBM-TV in Chicago. From 2001 until 2003, Acosta worked as a correspondent for CBS News' Newspath service, based both in Dallas and Chicago. From February 2003 until March 2007, Acosta was a correspondent for CBS News and was based first in New York and then in Atlanta.

At CBS News, Acosta covered the 2004 campaign of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, the Iraq War from Baghdad, and Hurricane Katrina. In April 2007, Acosta joined CNN. During the following year, Acosta covered the 2008 presidential campaigns of Democratic candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, frequently appearing as an anchor of CNN's weekend political program, "Ballot Bowl." Acosta later joined CNN's "American Morning" program as a correspondent and contributed to the network's coverage of the 2010 mid-term congressional election.

In February 2012, CNN promoted Acosta to the position of National Political Correspondent. In his role as National Political Correspondent, Acosta was the network's lead correspondent in covering the 2012 presidential campaign of Republican nominee Mitt Romney. Acosta is now the Senior White House Correspondent for CNN.

At a nationally televised news conference in November 2015, Acosta challenged President Obama on his administration's strategy for destroying the terrorist organization known as ISIS. "Why can't we take out these bastards," Acosta asked.

In March 2016, Acosta traveled to Cuba to cover President Obama's historic trip to the island. At a rare news conference in Havana featuring both Obama and Cuban president Raul Castro, Acosta pressed the Cuban leader on his country's human rights record.

President Trump press conferences

At a nationally televised news conference in May 2016, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump derisively called Acosta "a real beauty" for his reporting. Interrupting Acosta, who was asking Trump about his ability to deal with scrutiny, Trump said sarcastically, "Excuse me, excuse me, I've watched you on TV. You're a real beauty."

During President-elect Trump's first press conference on January 11th, 2017, Acosta attempted to ask a question to the President-elect regarding Russia, however, Trump called on other reporters instead, denouncing Acosta and CNN as "fake news".

On August 2, 2017 Acosta got into a heated debate at a White House press conference with White House senior policy advisor Stephen Miller over the Trump Administration's support for the RAISE Act."

Personal life

In 2017, Acosta separated from his wife of 24 years, Sharon Mobley Stow, a registered nurse; they have two daughters and a son. Acosta's net worth is estimated to be over 2 million dollars.