Debra L. Lee was born on the 8th August 1954, in Fort Jackson, South Carolina USA and is a businesswoman, who now serves as the CEO and Chairman of BET. Due to her multiple achievements she has been named one of the “100 Most Powerful Women in Entertainment”. More, Lee has been inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame. Debra L. Lee has been accumulating her net worth being active in the entertainment industry for more than 25 years, so far.
How rich is this well known businesswoman? It has been estimated that the overall size of Debra L. Lee’s net worth is as much as $30 million; reportedly, she now earns over $5 million per year.
Debra L. Lee Net Worth $30 Million
To begin with, she was raised in Greensboro, North Carolina. She was educated at James B. Dudley High School and matriculated to Brown University. In 1976, she graduated earning a Bachelor’s degree, then continued with Master’s degree from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government; moreover, she earned another degree at Harvard Law School. Debra started her career as a law clerk serving the Court for the District of Columbia. Later, she worked as an attorney in Washington D.C. both a steady start to her net worth.
Following this, she entered BET, at first as a corporate secretary, and president and publisher of the publishing division of BET. Then, she went on working in the legal affairs department as Vice President of BET. At the beginning of 1996, she was promoted to the position of President and Chief Operating Officer of BET Holdings Inc. After nine years she reached the position of President and Chief Executive Officer. It has been estimated that the company earned in $100 million from only revenue in 2015. Undoubtedly, this helped to increase the outright size of Debra L. Lee’s net worth, as well. It is believed that her net worth will rise in the near future.
Furthermore, Debra L. Lee has other obligations, too, and she serves on the board of directors of Revlon and Marriott. Additionally, she is a director of the Monsanto subsidiary Genuity, WGL Holdings, Washington Gas Light Company and others. It is worth mentioning the fact that all the above mentioned engagements also add sums to the total size of Debra L. Lee’s net worth.
In addition to the previously mentioned career highlights, Debra won the Women of Vision Award by Women in Film & Video in 2002, Madame C. J. Walker Award in 2005 as well as received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Brown University in 2014.
Finally, in the personal life of the businesswoman, she was married to Randal Spencer Coleman, the lawyer from 1985-87, and they have two children Quinn Spencer and Ava. Currently, Debra resides in Washington D.C., USA. Debra L. Lee does not reveal many facts about her personal life, although she is loved by journalists, although she participates in talk shows or gives interviews very rarely, so only a few may boast of getting a positive reply to their invitations.
