Omar Jimenez Biography
Omar Jimenez is an Emmy Award-winning CNN Correspondent based in New York. He joined CNN in 2017, initially working for the network’s affiliate service, CNN Newsource, in Washington, D.C. Before his current role in New York, he was based in CNN’s Chicago bureau, where he started as a correspondent in 2019. Jimenez began his on-air career as a multimedia journalist for WGEM-TV in Quincy, Illinois.
Omar Jimenez Age
Jimenez is 30 years old. He was born on November 27, 1993, in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States.
Omar Jimenez Height
He is 1.85 meters tall.
Omar Jimenez Nationality
He is American.
Omar Jimenez Education
Jimenez graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism with a degree in broadcast journalism. During his time at Northwestern, he played on the men’s varsity basketball team from 2011 to 2013, having made the team through a successful walk-on tryout. Additionally, Jimenez collaborated with other journalism and law students on the Chicago Innocence Project to investigate wrongful convictions.
Before attending Northwestern, Jimenez attended Kennesaw Mountain High School. While playing high school basketball, he fractured his back, sidelining him for eight months
Omar Jimenez Parents
Omar’s mother is Jayne Morgan, a cardiologist of African American descent. His father, Omar Jimenez Sr., is a neurosurgeon from Colombia. Omar was raised in Kennesaw, Georgia by his mother following their divorce when he was in sixth grade. He has three brothers: Jairo Jimenez, Dario Jimenez, and Mario Jimenez.
Omar Jimenez Wedding
Omar is married to Maya Voelk. The couple began dating in 2020 and were married on July 6, 2024. Maya Voelk is Asian-American and earned her business degree from Harvard Business School.
Omar Jimenez CNN
Jimenez is an Emmy Award-winning CNN Correspondent based in New York. He was previously based in CNN’s Chicago bureau, where he started as a correspondent in 2019. Jimenez has helped lead CNN’s coverage on numerous national and international stories including the murder of George Floyd, the first major COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, the sudden death of Kobe Bryant, and more.
While in Minneapolis covering protests after George Floyd’s death, he and his team were handcuffed and detained live on air by the Minnesota State Patrol. His team was held for a little over an hour before they were released and could return to coverage. Over the ensuing months, he helped lead the network’s coverage in both the trial and conviction of the former officer found responsible for murdering Floyd.
Throughout his time as a correspondent, Jimenez also helped cover the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, both economic and medical, from some of the hardest hit areas of the United States including from inside emergency rooms, jails, and numerous city hotspots.
Jimenez started with CNN in 2017 for the network’s affiliate service, CNN Newsource, based in Washington, D.C. While there, he covered breaking news stories for CNN’s more than 900 affiliates nationwide reporting both in the United States and internationally in France and Mexico. Among his work at Newsource: He reported from the ground in Paris in the aftermath of the Notre Dame Cathedral fire; from Las Vegas just hours after the mass shooting there, the deadliest in modern American history; and from Florida and Texas during the 2017 hurricanes that became part of CNN’s Emmy Award-nominated coverage.
Jimenez won his first National News & Documentary Emmy Award in 2021 for his work covering the death of George Floyd. In 2022, Jimenez was nominated for “Outstanding Emerging Journalist” for his body of work the previous year. Before joining CNN, Jimenez worked for WBAL-TV in Baltimore, Maryland where he was a reporter and fill-in anchor. While there, he received an individual Emmy Award nomination for general assignment reporting.
He covered the trials for the officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray, was the lead story on the station’s Emmy Award-winning special on opioids, and published pieces on opioid influence in Maryland and the fight against child sex trafficking across the state.
Jimenez began his on-air career as a multimedia journalist for WGEM-TV in Quincy, IL, where he covered a wide variety of stories, including the business behind the local methamphetamine trade at the time.
Omar Jimenez Salary
Jimenez’s salary at CNN is estimated to be around $200,000 per year.
Omar Jimenez Net Worth
Jimenez’s net worth is estimated to be around $1.5 million. This estimate includes his earnings from his journalism career, including his role at CNN, and other investments or ventures he may be involved in.
