As one of the most talked-about figures, Sam Donaldson has built a significant fortune. In this article, we dive deep into the assets and career highlights.
What Is Sam Donaldson's Net Worth and Salary?
Military Service and Career Beginnings
In the late 1980s and 1990s, Sam earned $1-2 million per year from ABC. By the early 2000s, he was earning $4-5 million per year.
Sam Donaldson is a retired American reporter and news anchor who has a net worth of $50 million. Sam Donaldson worked for ABC News from 1967 to 2009. During that time, he served two tenures as the network's official White House correspondent, first from 1977 to 1989 and then from 1997 to 1999. Additionally, Donaldson served as a panelist and co-anchor on the ABC Sunday morning political affairs program "This Week." Sam officially retired from ABC News in 2013. Donaldson has won an Edward R. Murrow Award, four Emmy Awards, and three Peabody Awards.
Donaldson covered the 1976 presidential campaign ofJimmy Carterand was appointed as ABC's official White House correspondent in early 1977. He remained in that position through early 1989. Sam also anchored ABC's Sunday evening news broadcasts from 1979 until 1989. Meanwhile, from 1981 to 1996, he served as a panelist on the Sunday morning political affairs program "This Week with David Brinkley." Following Brinkley's retirement in 1996, Donaldson took over as co-anchor alongsideCokie Roberts. The pair held their positions until 2002, when they were replaced byGeorge Stephanopoulos.
Samuel Donaldson Jr. was born on March 11, 1934, in El Paso, Texas. He is the son of farmer Samuel Sr. and schoolteacher Chloe. He was raised on his family's farm in Chamberino, New Mexico. For his education, Donaldson went to the New Mexico Military Institute and then to Texas Western College. At the latter school, he worked as the station manager of the campus radio station KTEP.
In 1956, Donaldson enlisted in the US Army. He went on to serve on active duty through 1959 as an artillery officer, reaching the rank of captain. Following his discharge, Sam joined the Dallas CBS television affiliate KRLD-TV, where he worked for a year. He subsequently moved to New York City to pursue a broadcast news job, which he failed to obtain. Donaldson had better luck in Washington, D.C., where he was hired by WTOP-TV in early 1961. For the station, he covered both local and national news, including such major stories as Barry Goldwater's presidential campaign and the Senate debates on the civil rights bill. Sam also anchored the weekend evening newscasts.
Donaldson was hired as a Washington correspondent for ABC News in late 1967. Over the following two years, he covered the political conventions for both of the major political parties. He also started to anchor the network's late-night weekend newscasts. Sam went on to cover many major national stories throughout the '70s. Early in the decade, he covered the Vietnam War and served as ABC's chief Watergate correspondent, reporting about the Watergate trial and Senate hearings as well as the impeachment investigation ofRichard Nixon.
In summary, the total wealth of Sam Donaldson reflects strategic moves.
Disclaimer: All net worth figures are estimates based on public data.