Maria Bartiromo grew up in Brooklyn, where she worked for the family restaurant, Rex Manor. Her mother’s family had immigrated to the United States from Sicily. Her grandfather immigrated from the Campania region of Italy.
The Bartiromo’s ran a successful business, but they still needed income from other sources, so she, her mother, and sisters often worked other jobs. While attending college at C. W. Post and New York University, she supported herself by working at an off-track betting parlor.
Today, Bartiromo is known as one of the most influential and financially successful conservative journalists, anchors, and authors.
How Did Maria Bartiromo Get Started?
Maria started her career in media by earning a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and economics from New York University.
While enrolled in the NYU’s undergraduate program, she got involved in broadcast media and interned on conservative radio host Barry Farber’s show.
After graduation, she took an internship at CNN, where she would quickly become an executive producer for CNN Business.
While working for CNN Business, she reported to Lou Dobbs, who would become important to her future career at Fox Business.
Maria Bartiromo CNBC
Bartiromo had several successful shows at CNBC. Roger Ailes, who was an executive at CNBC, hired her to work as an analyst.
She became the first journalist to talk to her audience directly from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. These segments often appeared on Squawk Box and Market Watch.
As Bartiromo’s popularity grew, she served as managing editor or anchor in shows like:
- Business Center
- Market Wrap
- Closing Bell
- Wall Street Journal Report, which changed its name to On the Money with Maria Bartioromo
During a period in the 1990s, Bartiromo took on the nickname “Money Honey,” a moniker she later trademarked to use as a brand name for a line of children’s products.
During this period, she appeared on a broad range of television shows, including:
- The Oprah Winfrey Show
- Late Night with Conan O’Brien
- The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
- Real Time with Bill Mahar
- The Colbert Report
- Live with Regis and Kelly
What Is Maria Bartiromo’s Salary on Fox?
In 2013, Maria Bartiromo left CNBC to join Fox Business. The channel started her in a program called Opening Bell with Maria Bartiromo, which gave her an opportunity to speak on a broad range of topics, including the stock market and the influence of public policy on the economy.
By this point in her career, Bartiromo had earned the respect of colleagues at numerous news channels. Her popularity surged, however, when she used her position to promote presidential candidate Donald Trump. At first, she took a slightly critical view of candidate Trump; she even referred to Hillary Clinton’s experience in government.
By the end of 2016, Bartiromo had thrown her full support behind Donald Trump, going so far as to air segments about unconfirmed stories circulating online about Hillary Clinton.
Even though her economic journalism remained above the squabbles of politics, her relationship with Trump led to her repeating his campaign’s talking points about Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and others.
During disputes involving the 2020 presidential election, Bartiromo promoted claims that the election had been stolen from former president Donald Trump. Bartiromo allegedly coordinated with Trump’s chief of staff, Mark Meadows, before a post-election interview with the former president.
Afterwards, Trump said Bartiromo was brave for pursuing the truth. Some journalists took the opposing view, saying that Bartiromo had given Trump a platform to undermine the election process.
Bartiromo was accused of promoting narratives about topics like:
- Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic rigging the election (she was personally identified in a lawsuit brought against Fox by Smartmatic)
- Democrats masquerading as Trump supporters and storming the Capitol
- Irregularities in the 2020 presidential election
Despite, or because of, Bartiromo’s pivot to sensationalized news stories, her shows gained popularity and Fox News signed her to a five-year contract.
How Did Maria Bartiromo Make Her Money?
Maria Bartiromo made her money as a broadcast journalist who reported on finances, economics, stock market performance, and politics.
She has also published several books, including:
- Use the NewsL How to Separate the Noise from the Investment Nuggets and Make Money in Any Economy (2001)
- The 10 Laws of Enduring Success (2010)
- The Weekend That Changed Wall Street (2011)
- The Cost: Trump, China, and American Renewal (2020, co-authored by James Freeman)
Bartiromo has appeared in several films. She plays herself in:
- Risk/Reward, a documentary about women in Wall Street (2003)
- The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)
- Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010)
- Inside Job, a documentary about the 2007=2008 financial crisis (2010)
- Arbitrage (2012)
What Is Maria Bartiromo’s Net Worth?
Most estimates put Maria Bartiromo’s net worth at $50 million, although some put her wealth as high as $70 million.
While working at CNBC, her salary peaked at around $6 million. A contract she signed with Fox Business gives her a $10 million annual salary.
At $10 million per year, she’s one of the highest-paid journalists on TV. Those who earn more likely include:
- Sean Hannity ($45 million)
- Rachel Maddow ($30 million)
- Laura Ingraham ($15 million)
- George Stephanopoulos ($15 million)
Is Maria Bartiromo Married to a Billionaire?
Maria Bartiromo married Jonathan Steinberg in 1999, nine years after they met at Bartiromo’s college graduation.
Steinberg is the CEO of WisdomTree, an investment management firm with $99.5 billion in assets under management (AUM).
Although Steinberg leads a multi-billion-dollar business, he hasn’t quite reached billionaire status. He does, however, have an estimated net worth of $74 million.
Given that Maria Bartiromo has a net worth close to $50 million, they are a wealthy couple, though not billionaires on paper.
Although Maria Bartiromo isn’t married to a billionaire, Jonathan Steinberg’s father, Saul Steinberg (1939-2013) was a billionaire before the end of his life.
Steinberg became a millionaire before turning 30. After graduating from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, he founded a company that leased IBM computers to other institutions. His wealth grew considerably when he took the company, Leasco Data Professing Equipment Corporation, public.
Steinberg was involved in several high-profile deals. For example, he used Leasco to acquire Reliance Insurance Company, even though the insurance company was about 10 times the size of Leasco. He also oversaw unsuccessful deals that would have given Leasco ownership of Chemical Bank and Walt Disney Productions.
Why didn’t Jonathan Steinberg become a billionaire after his father’s death? Because Saul passed his estate to his wife, Gayfryd McNabb MacLean Johnson. Even if the empire had gone to Saul’s children, Jonathon would have to split it with his five siblings.
Does Maria Bartiromo Have Any Kids?
Maria Bartiromo doesn’t have any kids, but she does talk about her dog, Dusty, on air often.
Who Is Maria Bartiromo’s Sister?
Theresa Santoro is Maria Bartiromo’s sister. Santoro is the president and CEO of RVNAhealth, a private, non-profit healthcare provider that offers a range of branded services, including:
- BeWELL, which offers nutrition services, public health initiatives, travel health services, and chronic care management
- GetWELL, a brand focused on in-home services like skilled nursing and rehabilitation
- StayingWELL, a brand that provides personal caregiving and medical alert services
- ComfortWELL, a hospice services provider
RVNAhealth also operates a rehabilitation and wellness center in Ridgefield, CT, a community about halfway between New York City and New Haven, CT.
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