Is Nicolle Wallace related to journalist Chris Wallace?
Short answer – Nicolle Wallace and Chris Wallace are both prominent figures in the field of American broadcast journalism, known for their insightful political commentary and wide-ranging interviews. Their shared last name has led to speculation about a possible family connection, but they are not related by blood or marriage.
Introduction
Nicolle Wallace is a journalist, author, political strategist, and former co-host of the long running talk show, The View.
She’s always been a no holds barred journalist with an engaging, passionate, and opinionated delivery.
She has also led conversations with some of the most respected names in the political arena, hosted Deadline: White House, and was once the White House Communications Director to President George W. Bush.
Impressive, right?
There’s another Wallace in the political arena who has just as much going for him.
Chris Wallace is the son of the iconic media jock, Mike Wallace.
While Nicolle cut her teeth on California state politics in the 90s, Chris has been working as a broadcast journalist since back in 1975.
The comprehensive journalist is known for his hard-hitting but fair interview style. With more than half a century of experience in his field, Chris Wallace is everywhere—CBS, NBC, Fox News, ABC, and CNN.
He’s an award winner who made history as the first-ever Fox News journalist to moderate a US presidential debate.
The debate was between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and one-time president Donald Trump.
So, do these two journalistic gems have more in common than their careers?
Is Nicolle Wallace related to Chris Wallace?
Let’s find out.
Who is Nicolle Wallace?
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Nicolle Wallace: The Early Years
Nicolle Wallace was born Nicolle Devenish on February 4, 1972.
Born in Orange County, Southern California, Nicolle is the eldest of four kids—her mom was a teacher’s aide and her dad was an antique dealer.
The family moved from Orange County to Orinda, Northern California, when Nicolle was a kid.
Nicolle’s paternal grandfather was Thomas Devenish—co-founder of Devenish and Company, the famed Manhattan antique dealership.
Through Thomas, Nicolle gets her English heritage.
She is also part Greek.
Devenish attended Miramonte High School before enrolling at the University of California, Berkeley, to study for a BA in mass communications.
She went on to earn her master’s from Northwestern University in 1996.
Nicolle married diplomat and lawyer Mark Wallace in 2005—she took his name professionally.
The couple welcomed their only child, a son named Liam, in 2012, and the pair divorced in 2019.
In 2022, Nicolle remarried, this time to journalist Michael Schmidt.
Career Highlights
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Just three years after earning her master’s degree, Nicolle was living in Florida and working as Governor Jeb Bush’s press secretary.
From there came a role as Communications Director and within the 2000 Florida Election recount committee.
Nicolle Wallace became part of George W. Bush’s White House staff in his first term—first as special assistant to the President, and then as the director of media affairs.
By 2003, the driven young politico was part of the Bush presidential campaign.
As the campaign’s communications director, she tread a fine line between vicious political strategist and elegant professional media darling.
Wallace would also serve John McCain in his 2008 presidential campaign before branching into fiction writing.
Her series—aptly named White House—featured her 2010 writing debut, Eighteen Acres.
Ever comfortable in front of the camera, Wallace moved into television when she took on a co-hosting role on The View in 2013.
After one season on the hit show, she joined MSNBC as a political analyst.
READ MORE: What happened to Korey Wise in prison?
Who is Chris Wallace?
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Chris Wallace was born on October 12, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois.
He is the son of Norma Kaphan and 60 Minutes journalist Mike Wallace.
Even as a teenager, Wallace was driven—he worked as an assistant to Walter Cronkite during the Republican Convention when he was just 17 years old.
From there, he headed to Harvard, and then on to The Boston Globe as a national reporter.
Career Highlights
Wallace would spend the early portion of his broadcasting career with NBC as a White House correspondent for 13 years.
Over the next 50 years of Chris Wallace’s career, there would be impressive stints as a correspondent and anchor on every major news network—from CBS and ABC to CNN, and Fox News.
In 2016 Chris Wallace made history when he became the first Fox News journalist to be invited to moderate a US presidential debate.
He so impressed viewers and fellow journalists that in 2020 he was invited to moderate the next US presidential debate—this time between Trump and Joe Biden.
This debate took on a different tone than the first, with Wallace himself calling it “chaotic and unruly.”
In 2022, Wallace accepted a role in the self-titled CNN interview series, Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace? It aired on CNN+ before moving to CNN and HBO Max concurrently.
Chris Wallace must have quite the trophy case—to date, the iconic journalist has received three Emmys, a Paul White lifetime achievement award, a Silver Baton, a Peabody Award, and a George Polk Award.
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Is Nicolle Wallace related to Chris Wallace?
So, is Nicolle Wallace related to Chris Wallace? Despite the clear commonalities—their surnames and their careers—Nicolle Wallace and Chris Wallace are not related. Nicolle’s maiden name is Devenish, and she took the name Wallace when she married Mark Wallace. He is also not related to Chris Wallace.
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