Don Harrison (August 8, 1936 – May 2, 1998) was an anchor on
CNN Headline News
HLN is an American basic cable network. Owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, the network primarily carries true crime programming.
The channel was originally launched on January 1, 1982 by Turner Broadcasting as CNN2 (later renamed Headline News ...
from 1982 until his death from renal cancer in 1998. He was a member of the original team of anchors when Headline News went on the air for the first time as "CNN2" in 1982.
Harrison, a native of
Ottawa, Kansas, spent over three decades in the broadcast business. For 11 years he was on the staff of KCMO-TV (now
KCTV
KCTV (channel 5) is a television station in Kansas City, Missouri, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Gray Television alongside MyNetworkTV affiliate KSMO-TV (channel 62). Both stations share studios on Shawnee Mission Parkway ...
) in
Kansas City
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more th ...
, and for another four years he worked for
KMSP in
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...
-
St. Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
. He anchored
WBAL-TV's Action News in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
in the early 1970s. He was the popular primary anchor at
Tampa
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...
's
WTSP
WTSP (channel 10) is a television station licensed to St. Petersburg, Florida, United States, serving the Tampa Bay area as an affiliate of CBS. The station is owned by Tegna Inc., and maintains studios on Gandy Boulevard on St. Petersburg' ...
from 1979 to 1982.
Harrison was also in high demand for voice-over work, mostly for Turner properties, including
TBS,
Turner Sports and
CNN International
CNN International (CNNI, simply branded on-air as CNN) is an international television channel that is owned by CNN Global. CNN International carries news-related programming worldwide; it cooperates with sister network CNN's national and inter ...
. In 1987, Harrison won the
CableACE
The CableACE Award (earlier known as the ACE Awards; ACE was an acronym for "Award for Cable Excellence") is a defunct award that was given by what was then the National Cable Television Association from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in Ame ...
award for best news anchor. It was recognition for a man characterized by a firm voice, elegant style and deep journalistic integrity. His colleagues at CNN also remember Harrison as the man with a wry smile and infectious humor, a man it was rewarding and a privilege to work with.
Harrison lost a leg due to bone cancer at age 13 and a kidney, also because of cancer, in 1993. He was married and had two sons and a daughter.
External links
Photos of Don Harrison at Headline NewsVideo clips of Don Harrison on Headline News*
AP's obituaryCNN's obituaryLA Times' obituaryTopeka Capital-Journal's obituaryAmerican Journalism Review article about the time when Don Harrison was almost forced to announce the death of a U.S. president who was still aliveHarrison joins Baltimore's WBAL-TV in ''Broadcasting'', January 7, 1974
1937 births
1998 deaths
American television news anchors
People from Ottawa, Kansas
Deaths from kidney cancer
American male journalists
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