Van Jones Biography
Van Jones (Anthony Kapel Jones) is an American journalist, author and lawyer serving as a host and contributor for CNN. He is also the co-founder of several non-profit organizations and a three-time New York Times bestselling author.
Van Jones Age
He was born on September 20, 1968 in Jackson, Tennessee, U.S.
Van Jones Height
Jones stands tall with a height of 6feet 1inch (1.85m).
Van Jones Education
Jones graduated from Jackson Central-Merry High School, a public high school in his hometown, in 1986. He earned his Bachelor of Science in communication and political science from the University of Tennessee at Martin (UT Martin). During this period, Jones also worked as an intern at The Jackson Sun (Tennessee), the Shreveport Times (Louisiana), and the Associated Press (Nashville bureau).
At UT Martin, Jones helped to launch and lead a number of independent, campus-based publications. They included the Fourteenth Circle (University of Tennessee), the Periscope (Vanderbilt University), the New Alliance Project (statewide in Tennessee), and the Third Eye (Nashville’s African-American community).
He joined Yale Law School from 1990 to 1993 in Connecticut.
Van Jones Nationality
He is of American nationality.
Van Jones Parents
He is the son of a high school teacher, Loretta Jean and middle school principal, Willie Anthony Jones.
Van Jones Siblings
Jones has a twin sister, Angela.
Van Jones Wife
Van and Jana Carter married in 2005 and were together for 13 years before they decided to split in 2018.
Not a lot is known about why he and Jana decided to call it quits, but the divorce seems to have been amicable. In a press statement announcing their split, the couple insisted “there is no beef or drama just evolution.”
They clarified that “though we have decided to end our marriage, we still love each other very much.”
Jana Carter is the niece of former US President, Jimmy Carter, and her parents are Billy Carter and Sybil Spires. She worked at Oakland Unified School District and few other law firms before tying the knot with Van.
At the moment Van is not in any relationship.
Van Jones Kids
Van and Jana have two sons together, Mattai and Cabral, and the couple have joint legal and physical custody as they continue to co-parent the kids since they ended their marriage.
Speaking to People, Van said that, “We will continue raising our kids together, running our businesses together and supporting each other’s growth.”
Van Jones CNN
Jones is a CNN political commentator, regularly appearing across the network’s programming and special political coverage. He has hosted CNN’s The Van Jones Show, The Redemption Project with Van Jones, and The Messy Truth with Van Jones.
In June 2013, he was announced as a co-host of a re-boot of the CNN political debate show Crossfire, alongside Newt Gingrich, Stephanie Cutter and S.E. Cupp. The new version of Crossfire made its debut on September 16, 2013, but the show had been canceled by October 2014.
He launched The Messy Truth in 2016, a news feature documentary series and subsequent studio discussion series, The Messy Truth with Van Jones, aired in 2017. In 2018, he launched The Van Jones Show, with Jay-Z as his first guest.
Jones launched The Redemption Project with Van Jones in 2019, a show focused on restorative justice and bringing “offenders face to face with the people most affected by their violent crimes.”
He is also the co-creator of the Emmy Award-winning virtual reality series, The Messy Truth VR Experience.
Jones is also the CEO of REFORM Alliance, which launched in January 2019. The mission of the REFORM Alliance is to dramatically reduce the number of people who are unjustly under the control of the criminal justice system starting with probation and parole. REFORM is backed by a bi-partisan and diverse group of sports, entertainment and business leaders, including award-winning recording artist Meek Mill; Philadelphia 76ers co-owner and Fanatics executive chairman Michael Rubin; entrepreneur and business Mogul Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter; Kraft Group CEO and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft; Brooklyn Nets co-owner and philanthropic investor Clara Wu Tsai; Third Point LLC CEO and founder Daniel S. Loeb; Galaxy Digital CEO and founder Michael E. Novogratz; Vista Equity Partners founder, chairman and CEO Robert F. Smith.
He has been a leader in the fight for criminal justice reform for more than 25 years. He has founded and led many thriving social enterprises, including the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, Color of Change, and the Dream Corps, a social justice accelerator that houses #YesWeCode, #GreenForAll, and #cut50, which recently led the charge to pass the FIRST STEP Act (a bipartisan Federal bill that The New York Times calls “the most substantial breakthrough in criminal justice in a generation”).
Van was the main advocate for the Green Jobs Act. Signed into law by George W. Bush in 2007, the Green Jobs Act was the first piece of federal legislation to codify the term “green jobs.” During the Obama Administration, the legislation resulted in $500 million in national funding for green jobs training.
In 2009, Jones worked as the Green Jobs advisor to President Barack Obama. In this role, he helped to lead the inter-agency process that oversaw the multi-billion-dollar investment in skills training and jobs development within the environmental and green energy sectors.
Van Jones Awards
He has been honored with numerous awards and spotlighted on several lists of high achievers including:
- An Emmy Award; the World Economic Forum’s “Young Global Leader” designation.
- Rolling Stone’s “12 Leaders Who Get Things Done.”
- TIME’s 2009 “100 Most Influential People in The World.”
- An NAACP President’s Award.
- The Root’s “The Root 100.”
Van Jones Books
Jones is an author of three New York Times best-selling books:
- Beyond the Messy Truth (2017)
- The Green Collar Economy (2008)
- Rebuild the Dream (2012), about his journey as an environmental and human rights activist to becoming a White House policy advisor.
Van Jones Kim Kardashian
Van has been involved with Kim Kardashian’s goal of becoming a lawyer. The two of them have struck up a close friendship, but in light of the recent rumors that Kim may be divorcing her husband Kanye West, some think there may be a little more to the story.
After news of Kim and Kanye’s possible divorce started making headlines, it didn’t take long for people to claim that Kim has already started dating someone else. And, since she’s already friends with Van and Van is also newly single, people naturally leaped to the conclusion that the two of them are now together.
So far, neither party has confirmed the dating rumors, and there are many outlets reporting that it’s nothing but a hoax.
Van Jones Salary
His salary is under review.
Van Jones Net Worth
He has a net worth of around $5 million.
Van Jones Instagram
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