About the Host

Deborah Norville

One of the most watched, trusted and acclaimed journalists on television, Deborah Norville has covered the milestones of a generation. From the funerals of Pope John Paul II and Ronald Reagan and the devastation in D.C. on September 11th to the inauguration of Barack Obama and the red carpet at the Oscars– if it moved us, if it changed the world, she was there.

Norville has been a correspondent for NBC, CBS, ABC and MSNBC, and she has anchored four major network news shows: 48 Hours, CBS Evening News, NBC’s Today Show, and since 1995, Inside Edition, winning two Emmys in the process. Viewers look to Norville to make sense of our times with her unique insight, integrity and compassion.

A best-selling author, Norville’s latest book is The Power of Respect:  Benefit From the Most Forgotten Element of Success (Oct. 2009, Thomas Nelson) provides a timely explanation of the measurable increases in productivity, creativity and other benefits that result from respectful behavior. The book follows her New York Times Best Seller, Thank You Power:  Making the SCIENCE of Gratitude Work For YOU (Oct. 2007, Thomas Nelson).  Thank You Power brought together for the first time the growing body of academic research proving the benefits of gratitude.

In 2009, Norville capitalized on her lifelong love of fiber arts with The Deborah Norville Collection, a line of fine yarns for hand knitting and crocheting, found in major craft stores around the country.  Her companion book, Knit With Deborah Norville features a variety of classic patterns using yarns from her collection.

It is her work in television that’s made Deborah a household name.  As anchor of Inside Edition, she has covered a wide variety of stories and events. She broadcast from Washington DC hours after the terror attacks of September 11th,  was in Rome for the funeral of Pope John Paul II, Inside Edition’s coverage of the funeral of President Ronald Reagan and the inauguration of President Barack Obama, and is regularly on the red carpet for Hollywood’s star-studded events including the Oscars and the Emmy Awards.

Norville made headlines for her week of groundbreaking reports – as an inmate — from a North Carolina penal institution known as the “toughest jail in America.” The story won Norville two national awards for reporting excellence. She snagged the first national interview with Bethany Hamilton, the young surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack in Hawaii. She was on the scene of the American Airlines jet crash in Cali, Colombia, and interviewed Paula Jones for the first wide-ranging talk about the lawsuit against then-President Bill Clinton. On a lighter note, she wrote and recorded a dance song and music video, with Inside Edition’s cameras documenting the process.

Norville’s reporting career began while still a student at the University of Georgia.  As a reporter for WAGA-TV in Atlanta, she conducted a live interview with then-President Jimmy Carter.  After graduating summa cum laude (4.0) First Honor Graduate from UGA, she was named weekend anchor at WAGA-TV. In 1982 she joined WMAQ-TV in Chicago as reporter and then later anchor.  In 1987 she joined NBC News as anchor of NBC News at Sunrise. Ratings jumped 40% her first three months in that position. Norville was later named news anchor and then co-host of NBC’s Today program, a position she held until the birth of her first child in 1991.  Norville resumed her broadcasting career with the Deborah Norville Show, heard on more than 200 ABC Radio Network stations.  She joined CBS News in 1993 as a correspondent and later anchor for such programs as Street Stories, 48 Hours, and the CBS Evening News. She was also host of Deborah Norville Tonight on MSNBC.

Norville is active in a number of charities. She has been National Celebrity Spokesperson for the Mother’s March of Dimes, a director for Girl Scout Council of Greater New York, Broadcasters Foundation, the Women’s Committee of the Central Park and on the Steering Committee for the Rita Hayworth (Alzheimer’s) Gala.

A sought-after lecturer, Norville speaks with candor and humor about dealing with life’s curves and juggling a career and motherhood.

She can be reached via her Web site: www.deborahnorville.com