Chris Hansen

Christopher Edward Hansen (born September 13, 1959) is an American television presenter, journalist and YouTube personality. He rose to mainstream recognition as a correspondent for Dateline NBC, hosting the short-lived segment To Catch a Predator (2004–2007), which revolved around catching potential Internet predators using a sting operation. Despite its cancellation, Hansen would become best known for his predator investigations and interviews, leading to him hosting similarly-formatted shows on other networks. After parting ways with NBC in 2013, he hosted Killer Instinct on Investigation Discovery in 2015, which documents homicide investigations. In 2016, he became the host for the second and third season of the syndicated television series Crime Watch Daily. In 2020, he co-founded the true crime-oriented streaming service TruBlu, where he produced and starred in the web series TakeDown with Chris Hansen. Early life and education Hansen was born in Chicago, Illinois, on September 13, 1959, and grew up in West Bloomfield Township and Birmingham, Michigan. In an interview with City Pulse, Hansen said that he first wanted to be a journalist when he was 14 years old, watching and following the police and FBI investigation of the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa. He attended Brother Rice High School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Hansen graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelor of Arts in telecommunication in 1981. Career with NBC (1981–2013) In 1981, Hansen became a reporter for NBC affiliate WILX in Lansing, Michigan during his senior year at Michigan State University. He later reported for WFLA in Tampa, Florida, various newspapers and radio stations in Michigan and WXYZ in Detroit. In 1988, he was hired as an investigative reporter and anchor at WDIV in Detroit. In May 1993, Hansen joined NBC News as a correspondent for the short-lived news magazine Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric.