Last month, longtime NBC4 Washington news anchor Leon Harris stunned audiences when suddenly announced that he was leaving his job amid health problems.
The shocking news in the D.C. media came four months after Harris initially stepped away from the station in the aftermath of a broadcast in which he had a medical issue on-air.
NBC4 Washington anchor Leon Harris, who sparked health concerns in November, said it's "the right time to prioritize my health and family." https://t.co/tHoxhdXeki
— USA TODAY Life (@usatodaylife) April 9, 2025
The news came after a viral, Thanksgiving Day broadcast that showed Harris struggling mightily while delivering the news, including stumbling over words and hesitating awkwardly.
Well, it turns out Harris wasn’t suffering a health episode.
According to Harris himself, he was drunk.
The award-winning DC-based anchor revealed this week he was boozed up on air, saying he had a couple of glasses of wine with dinner within four hours between shows, enough to put him off kilter.
“I ended drinking in between shows and then went on the air and I was more affected than I thought I was, even at the time I felt I was perfectly fine,” he told former CNN co-anchor Daryn Kagan in her new YouTube show, “Call Me Friend.”
“I ended up getting pulled off the air. People were calling, they were thinking that I was having a stroke. It was the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to me.”
“My body has changed and I can’t drink anymore,” added Harris. “And I didn’t realize it.”
Harris said his boss had to come into the station on the Thanksgiving holiday and instructed him to get in an Uber to go home.
He took a leave of absence following the broadcast — a video of which quickly spread across social media — and last month jointly announced with NBC4 Washington that he was leaving the station for good.
“I kind of knew it was coming, but the station just felt it was too much of a negative event, it was too well-publicized that they didn’t feel comfortable in bringing me back,” Harris told Kagan. “Even though I left, I went immediately into rehab.”
Harris previously spoke about his battle with alcohol in March 2022 after he ran into trouble for crashing into another car while driving under the influence.
He also faced a major health scare in 2013 when he was diagnosed with necrotizing pancreatitis and almost died.
“My pancreas basically decided to start dying and taking my kidneys, my lungs and other internal organs along with it,” he told CNN more than a month after the scary medical episode.
Harris, 63, was with the Washington affiliate for eight years.
Harris previously worked for 21 years on CNN’s morning programs and another 14 years at WJLA, according to his station bio.
He covered major news events including the Oklahoma City bombing, the OJ Simpson trial, and the 9/11 terror attacks.
The journalist said it was gut-wrenching when he first viewed viral footage of his “career-altering” screw-up.
“It was like ‘Oh my God,’ I had no idea that I was that far gone,” he said. “And it was clear and it was obvious.”