Bomani Babatunde Jones
(born August 26, 1980) is an American sports journalist who was formerly employed by
ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. He was the co-host of ''
Highly Questionable
''Highly Questionable'' (stylized as ''¿Highly Questionable?''; abbreviated ''HQ'') is an American daily sports talk television program on ESPN. Created as a vehicle for former ''Miami Herald'' sportswriter and ESPN contributor Dan Le Batard, wh ...
'' with
Dan Le Batard
Dan Le Batard is an American newspaper sportswriter, ex-radio host, podcast host and television reporter based in Miami, Florida. He has also worked at ESPN, and for his hometown paper, the ''Miami Herald'', for which he wrote from 1990 to 2016. ...
, before leaving the show in June 2017 to develop his own show, ''High Noon.'' He is also a regular panelist on ''
Around the Horn''. Jones also hosts the podcast ''The Right Time with Bomani Jones'' for
ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
and his own podcast ''The Evening Jones''. He has also written for
SB Nation
''SB Nation'' (an abbreviation for their full name ''SportsBlogs Nation'') is a sports blogging network owned by Vox Media. It was co-founded by Tyler Blezinski, Markos Moulitsas, and Jerome Armstrong in 2003. The blog from which the netwo ...
,
Salon
Salon may refer to:
Common meanings
* Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...
and Page 2 at
ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc.
History
Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...
. His sister is award-winning novelist
Tayari Jones
Tayari Jones (born November 30, 1970) is an American author and academic known for '' An American Marriage'', which was a 2018 Oprah's Book Club Selection and won the 2019 Women's Prize for Fiction. Jones is a graduate of Spelman College, the Un ...
.
Early life and education
Jones, who is of
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
heritage, was born in
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States
Georgia may also refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
. Later he moved to
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
,
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, attending school in the town of
Waller in the
Greater Houston
Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...
area.
[http://www.bomanijones.com/about-media-personality-bomani-jones/ ] His economist mother Barbara Ann Posey and political scientist father Mack are professors and activists. Jones graduated from Clark Atlanta University
Clark Atlanta University (CAU or Clark Atlanta) is a private, Methodist, historically black research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded on September19, 1865, as Atlanta University, it was the first HBCU in the South ...
in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in economics. He followed that up with a master’s in politics, economics, and business from Claremont Graduate University
The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California, United States. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges consortium which includes five undergraduate and two grad ...
and a master’s in economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...
. He later studied towards a doctorate in economics at UNC, while living in Durham, North Carolina
Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...
.
Career
Before becoming a sportswriter, beginning in 2004 Jones worked as a music and pop culture critic, including writing for AOL
AOL (formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City, and a brand marketed by Yahoo! Inc.
The service traces its history to an online ...
and ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc.
History
Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...
. From January 2008 to October 2009, he hosted two radio shows in Raleigh: ''The Three Hour Lunch Break'' on 620 the Bull and ''Sports Saturday with Bomani Jones'' on 850 the Buzz.[ The shows ended after the radio stations were sold.][ In January 2010, Jones launched his radio show, ''The Morning Jones'', which was hosted from Durham, North Carolina.] Also in 2010, Jones began appearing as a contributor on ESPN's ''Outside the Lines
''Outside the Lines'' is an American sports news and analysis program that was broadcast by ESPN from 1990 to 2022. The series featured segments with discussions and investigative journalism surrounding prominent headlines and topics within spor ...
'' and a panelist on '' Around the Horn''.[ ''The Morning Jones'' ended on August 30, 2011.][ Jones later hosted his own internet shows, ''The Evening Jones''] and ''Bomani & Jones'' on SB Nation
''SB Nation'' (an abbreviation for their full name ''SportsBlogs Nation'') is a sports blogging network owned by Vox Media. It was co-founded by Tyler Blezinski, Markos Moulitsas, and Jerome Armstrong in 2003. The blog from which the netwo ...
's YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel until January 2013.[
Beginning in 2012, Jones appeared regularly on ]Dan Le Batard
Dan Le Batard is an American newspaper sportswriter, ex-radio host, podcast host and television reporter based in Miami, Florida. He has also worked at ESPN, and for his hometown paper, the ''Miami Herald'', for which he wrote from 1990 to 2016. ...
's ESPN2
ESPN2 is an American multinational pay television network owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between the Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications (which owns the remaining 20%).
ESPN2 was initially ...
show ''Dan Le Batard Is Highly Questionable
''Highly Questionable'' (stylized as ''¿Highly Questionable?''; abbreviated ''HQ'') is an American daily sports talk television program on ESPN. Created as a vehicle for former ''Miami Herald'' sportswriter and ESPN contributor Dan Le Batard, wh ...
'', where he discussed major sports stories with Le Batard.[ Around the same time, he began guest hosting '']The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
''The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz'' is a syndicated sports talk show hosted by Dan Le Batard and Jon "Stugotz" Weiner broadcast out of Miami. It was also carried on many ESPN Radio Network affiliates nationwide and simulcast nationally on ...
'' radio show on The Ticket Miami on Wednesdays. On May 9, 2013, it was reported that Jones had signed a new four-year contract with ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. In May 2013, Jones became co-host of the renamed ''Highly Questionable'', which moved to ESPN in March 2015. Jones remained on ''Highly Questionable'' until June 2017, when he left to prepare for a new project with fellow ESPN talent Pablo S. Torre.
In January 2014, Jones won three consecutive ''Around the Horn'' episodes in which he appeared. As of October 30, 2014, he has 104 wins in 373 appearances on ''Around the Horn''. On March 30, 2015, ''The Right Time With Bomani Jones'' debuted on ESPN Radio. On September 21, 2015, ''The Right Time'' was moved to the 4 to 7 PM time slot. In December 2017, "The Right Time" ceased airing daily on ESPN radio. It reappeared as an ESPN Podcast in April 2018. On June 4, 2018, Jones and Torre co-led the series debut of ''High Noon'' on ESPN. On March 13, 2022, Jones began a new show, ''Game Theory with Bomani Jones'', on HBO. Jones has served as an adjunct professor at Duke University
Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...
and Elon University
Elon University is a private university in Elon, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1889 as Elon College, the university is organized into six schools, most of which offer bachelor's degrees and several of which offer master's degrees or ...
.
References
External links
*
The Morning Jones on Sirius
The Evening Jones
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Bomani
1980 births
Living people
21st-century African-American people
African-American television personalities
American sports radio personalities
Claremont Graduate University alumni
Clark Atlanta University alumni
ESPN people
Journalists from Houston
People from Durham, North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni