Ali Velshi | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Velshi at theWhite House Correspondents Dinner in 2019 | |
| Born | (1968-10-29)October 29, 1968 or 1969 (age56–57) Nairobi, Kenya |
| Alma mater | Queen's University |
| Occupations | Broadcast journalist, author |
| Agents |
|
| Notable credits | |
| Title |
|
| Relatives | Murad Velshi (father),Shaf Keshavjee,Mohamed Keshavjee |
| Website | alivelshi |
Ali Velshi (born October 29, 1968, or 1969) is a Canadian televisionjournalist, a senior economic and business correspondent forNBC News, and an anchor forMS NOW. He is also a substitute anchor forThe Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell on MS NOW on Friday night. Velshi is based inNew York City. Known for his work onCNN, he was CNN's Chief Business Correspondent, anchor of CNN'sYour Money and a co-host of CNN International's weekday business showWorld Business Today. In 2013, he joinedAl Jazeera America, a channel that launched in August of that year.[1] He hostedAli Velshi on Target untilAl Jazeera America ceased operations on April 12, 2016. He has worked for MSNBC since October 2016.[2]
Velshi's family comes fromIndia, but in 1961 they moved toKenya.[3] Velshi was born inNairobi,[4] Kenya, and raised inToronto,Ontario, after moving there in 1971. He is anIsmaili Muslim ofGujaratiIndian descent.[5][6] He is the son ofMurad Velshi, the first Canadian of Indian origin elected to theLegislative Assembly of Ontario, and the son of Mila, also Indian, who grew up in South Africa. Velshi's parents operated a bakery in South Africa, but moved to Kenya in 1960, whenApartheid became oppressive. In Toronto, Velshi's parents operate a chain of travel agencies.[7]
Velshi attended Toronto'sNorthern Secondary School, where he was elected school president. He then earned a degree inreligious studies[8] fromQueen's University inKingston, Ontario, in 1994.[9] During his time at Queen's he made news by organizing protests againstPreston Manning andCanada's Reform Party. In 2010, he was awarded the Queen's University Alumni Achievement Award.[10] In 2016, he was awarded an honorary doctorate of laws by his alma mater.[11]
Velshi was married briefly in his twenties. In 2009, he married his second wife, New York–bornhedge fund manager Lori Wachs,[12] the president of Philadelphia-based Cross Ledge Investments, whom he met when she was a guest on his show. The couple have one child together, a daughter.[13] Velshi divides his time between an apartment in New York City and his home inMontgomery County, Pennsylvania.[14]
In 1996, Velshi was awarded afellowship to theUnited States Congress from theAmerican Political Science Association. In this capacity he worked withLee H. Hamilton, then aDemocraticRepresentative fromIndiana.[8]
In Toronto, Velshi began his professional reporting career as a General Assignment reporter forCFTO. He later became a business reporter andanchor forCablePulse 24 and its then sister stationCityTV. In 1999, he joinedReport on Business Television, (now BNN Bloomberg -Business News Network) Canada's first all-business newsspecialty channel. Velshi hostedThe Business News, Canada's first prime-time business news hour.[7]
Velshi moved to the U.S. in September 2001, joining business news channelCNNfn inNew York City. He anchored several shows, includingInsights,Business Unusual,Street Sweep, andYour Money, and co-hostedThe Money Gang withPat Kiernan before the network closed down in December 2004. Reassigned to the main CNN network, he remained a business anchor and reporter posted initially to CNN's early-morning programDaybreak. In 2005, Velshi hosted 13 hour-long episodes ofThe Turnaround, areality television show, during which he traveled across America introducing small business owners who were facing challenges or seeking to grow their businesses to high-profile mentors who helped the small business owners develop a plan for success.[15] AfterThe Turnaround, Velshi was assigned to the newly launchedThe Situation Room from 2005 to 2006. Velshi joinedAmerican Morning as business correspondent in late 2006 and then again as co-anchor in 2011. In 2008, Velshi undertook a cross-country road trip aboard theCNN Election Express, during which he travelled fromMyrtle Beach, South Carolina, toLos Angeles,California, stopping along the way to discuss money issues with Americans. Velshi also spent 10 days riding the CNN Election Express through ruralTexas before that state's March 4, 2008, primaries.[citation needed]
Velshi regularly was a substitute anchor for CNN/U.S. programs such asAmerican Morning. On Saturday and Sunday he co-hosted a business program calledYour Money. Velshi also hosted CNN'sEnergy Hunt, which took him to theArctic National Wildlife Refuge and to theOil Sands of Canada in 2008. Tragic events during 2008 brought Velshi more airtime, including reporting from thenow-destroyed Marriott Hotel inIslamabad,Pakistan,[16] after the killing ofBenazir Bhutto.[17] During coverage of HurricanesGustav[18] andIke, Velshi appeared on air, on location from hurricane-stricken areas, as the storms hit.[citation needed]
During the2008 financial crisis, Velshi again appeared on television frequently throughout the day on shows includingAmerican Morning andAnderson Cooper 360° and took viewers' live calls during special editions ofYour Money and during his weekly call-in radio show. Until leaving CNN, Velshi co-hosted the market opening edition ofWorld Business Today onCNN International.[19]
Being Muslim, Velshi regularly acknowledges his background and perspective when discussions involve Islam. Velshi has strongly defended the Muslim community's right to build a mosque and Islamic center (Park51) nearGround Zero inNew York City.[20] Velshi has also been critical ofPeter King's hearings on Islamic radicalization in the United States as a form ofIslamophobia, branding King as "naive". Velshi supports the separation of mosque and state and rejects "Political Islam", which requires the implementation ofSharia law.[21][22]
On April 4, 2013, it was announced that Velshi would be leaving CNN to joinAl Jazeera America to host a weekly 30-minute magazine-style prime-time program calledReal Money with Ali Velshi.[23] He was the first on-air personality to be hired for the new channel.[24] The channel stated that it hoped that Velshi's show would initially start off as a weekly show and become a daily show by the end of the year.[25]Real Money with Ali Velshi launched on August 20, 2013, as a daily weekday show. On May 12, 2015, the show relaunched asAli Velshi on Target. This show ended in April 2016 when Al Jazeera America shut down.[citation needed]
Velshi joined MSNBC in October 2016,[26] with additional duties at MSNBC's parent news division,NBC News, for which he serves as Business Correspondent.
Velshi initially co-anchored the 1:00 pm ET MSNBC news programVelshi & Ruhle withStephanie Ruhle, as well as having his own 3:00 PM ET news programMSNBC Live with Ali Velshi. Velshi was also appointed as the fill-in host ofThe Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell on Friday edition.[citation needed]
In December 2019, it was announced that he would move to a new weekend morning show,Velshi.[27]
Velshi is represented by the New York literary agencyN.S. Bienstock and by speaking agencyGreater Talent Network. His first book,Gimme My Money Back: Your Guide to Beating the Financial Crisis, was published on January 2, 2009. His second book,How to Speak Money: The Language & Knowledge You Need Now, co-authored by longtime friend and co-anchorChristine Romans, was released byJohn Wiley & Sons in November 2011.[citation needed]
In 2010, Velshi was awarded theQueen's University Alumni Achievement Award; the highest award given to Queen's University alumni. Also in 2010, Velshi's in-depth reporting for CNN's "How the Wheels Came Off" about the near collapse of the U.S. Auto Industry was honoured with a National Headliner Award for Business & Consumer Reporting. Velshi anchored CNN's global breaking news coverage of an attempted terror attack on a Delta flight into Detroit on Christmas Day 2009, for which CNN was nominated for a 2010 Emmy award. Velshi was nominated for two additional News & Documentary Emmy awards in 2015 for his contributions at Al Jazeera, including coverage of low wages paid to disabled American workers and a scandal involving red-light cameras in Chicago.[citation needed]
| Location | Date | School | Degree | Gave Commencement Address |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Ontario | 7 June 2016 | Queen's University | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[28] | Yes[29] |
 |
Referencing Velshi's signature bald pate, the comedianJon Stewart has referred to Velshi as the "Hairless Prophet of Doom" onThe Daily Show,[30]—the "H-POD" moniker is now frequently repeated by others.[citation needed][who?]
Stephen Colbert referred to Velshi as "CNN's business reporter from our hairless, raceless future" on an episode ofThe Colbert Report wherein he discussed the2008 financial crisis.
In addition to appearing onThe Daily Show, Velshi appeared onThe Oprah Winfrey Show on October 3, 2008, during the2008 financial crisis and onThe View on February 4, 2009, after the launch of his first book on the crisis.
Velshi played himself in the 2010Oliver Stone filmWall Street: Money Never Sleeps.
During the recurring intro segment ofseason 7 ofHomeland[31] at the 30 second-mark, there is an audio clip of Velshi saying, "... the mood of the country. It's not great ...". This audio clip was taken from the August 30, 2017, edition of MSNBC'sThe 11th Hour when Velshi was a guest host. His full transcript was: "A new Fox News poll gives us an even closer look at the mood of the country. It's not great."[32]
Velshi is a member of theCouncil on Foreign Relations,the Economic Club of New York,[33] the New York Financial Writers Association, ThePaley Center for Media, a member of the Board of Trustees of theChicago History Museum, a member of the Board of Trustees ofSeeds of Peace, and a member of the Grand Challenges Advisory Committee of theNational Academy of Engineering. He is also on the Board of Trustees of theX Prize Foundation, which is a non-profit organization that designs and manages public competitions intended to encourage technological development that could benefit humanity.[34]
The Velshis belong to the Ismaili branch of Islam, led by the Aga Khan. Their forebears are from Gujarat state in India, though Murad and Mila, Ali's mother, grew up in South Africa. Ali's great-grandfather was a friend of Gandhi, who arrived in South Africa in 1893; his grandfather was a student in a Gandhi-organized school, and an uncle took part in passive-resistance anti-apartheid actions.
In the keynote address Al Jazeera America host Ali Velshi, whose great-grandparents moved to Africa from Gujarat a century ago, recalled the struggles his forefathers had to endure in their adopted land.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
