Lee Hawkins (journalist)

Lee Hawkins, Jr. is an American journalist and musician.

Early life

Hawkins grew up in Maplewood, Minnesota. His father, Lee Hawkins, Sr., is an Alabama native. Hawkins attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, graduating with a degree in political science.

Journalism career

Hawkins began his career as a business reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Wisconsin State Journal.

Hawkins is a reporter and news editor for The Wall Street Journal. Since 2011 he has also done on-camera interviews for the WSJ website and their sister site WSJ Live. He has interviewed celebrities from the business, sports and entertainment worlds, in many cases for a series of segments titled The Business of Celebrity w/ Lee Hawkins.

He is also a regular guest on Fox Business Network.

Hawkins coined the term "NEWBOs", or "New Black Overclass", to describe a younger generation of wealthy and business-savvy African-American celebrities. In 2009 he presented the CNBC special NEWBOs: The Rise of the New Black Overclass, which profiled LeBron James, Kirk Franklin and Terrell Owens, among others.