GRADUATE Profiles
DARIAN BILLINGTON D By Samantha Mitchell
arian Billington (’96) was born and raised in the Mississippi Delta as the sixth of seven children. His father was a mechanic and prominent blues musician Johnnie Billington. His mother was caring and loving. She encouraged him to discover the world for himself. Today, he is a senior producer for HLN and works closely with Robin Meade and other well-known TV personalities. And he will tell you, he couldn’t be more proud to be from Mississippi. “For me, education changed everything,” Billington said. “I don’t think that can ever be underestimated. It made a huge difference in the outcome of my life and where I managed to get to.” Growing up, Billington was a lot of firsts in his family, including the first to attend college. “I had a much smaller vision for myself,” Billington said. “Going to college was sort of a last-minute decision, and it was not something that was sort of talked about or expected.” To this day, he speaks fondly of his first encounter with the Department of Journalism at Ole Miss, as well as his first meeting with Dean Will Norton, Jr. — experiences he now says changed the course of his life. “I showed Darian around Farley Hall when he visited before enrolling at the university,” Norton said. “He took advantage of the fine faculty members we had and the student media. By the time he graduated he had significant experience, and his common sense and sensitivity have enabled him to be a leading producer at CNN. He is
an example of excellence and uncommon stewardship.” Billington started at Ole Miss in the fall of 1988, where he discovered his love for storytelling and traveling. He received hands-on experience working for News Scene 12, now known as NewsWatch, as well as The Daily Mississippian and the radio station. “It was very hard to be at Ole Miss and not be affected by the ambition of the people around you,” Billington said, “That slowly but surely changed my vision, the dreams that I had for myself.” His college experiences didn’t end there. He received the distinguished opportunity to intern at “Good Morning America” in New York City in the summer of 1992 and fell in love with Manhattan. He recalled that he did not know where anything was, but he didn’t mind. Billington walked in his graduation ceremony in spring of 1993; however, his diploma states 1996. He chuckled as he recounted his experiences, noting that he traveled a bit before he officially graduated. He stayed in Paris for several months, as well as other countries such as Italy, Spain and Greece. Billington has traveled to at least 40 different countries since his graduation, but, he said, the university is a place he won’t forget. “Ole Miss and the School of Journalism have played a huge part in making me the man I am today,” he said. “I could not be more proud to be a product of both.” Billington’s first job out of Ole Miss was with the Associated Press Broadcast News Center in Washington, D.C. He worked for them for two years then was hired away to work for CNN International originally as a VJ. He quickly was promoted to work as an associate producer at CNN. One of the first major news stories that he covered was the death of John F. Kennedy Jr. in a plane crash.
Ole Miss and the School of Journalism have played a huge part in making me the man I am today. I could not be more proud to be a product of both.” 28 MEEK SCHOOL
