He began his journalism career as a news assistant for ABC News in the Washington bureau. He later worked as a reporter at the Daily Press in Newport News, Virginia. In 1996, Baker became a Los Angeles-based correspondent for People magazine. In 1999, he became the magazine's Northwest correspondent, based in Northern California. Baker later was named West Coast Bureau Chief for Us Weekly as well as the West Coast Executive Editor and Editorial Director of Usmagazine.com. He went on to become Senior Correspondent for E! News as well as the host of E! Online's daily web show Live From E!. Baker appears on Fox News Channel, The Today Show, CNN, MSNBC and HLN. In October 2017, Baker was pulled from the air by E! News while they investigated claims of sexual harassment.
Author
Baker has written numerous books. In 2001, Baker published Man Made: A Memoir of My Body which tells the story of his battle with a prolactinoma. The 2016 filmThe Late Bloomer is an adaptation of this memoir. Baker's second memoir, They Don't Play Hockey in Heaven: A Dream, a Team and My Comeback Season chronicled the season he spent as pro hockey's oldest rookie, published in 2003. Published in 2005, Hollywood Hussein is a satirical take on the capture of Saddam Hussein. Baker also co-authored The Great Eight: How to Be Happy in 2009. In 2012, Baker published his first young adult novel, Fangirl, which tells the story of a fictional pop star who falls in love with a fan. In 2014, he published the novelHow I Got Skinny, Famous and Fell Madly in Love. Also in 2014, Baker contracted with Perseus Books Group's Running Press to write a series of novels called Deadline Diaries. The series of thrillers will tell the story of a teenage celebrity blogger working to uncover Hollywood mysteries. The first of the series, Finding Forever, was published in September 2015.
Philanthropy
Baker is a speaker at schools and community/charity events. He has hosted the LAPD Hollenbeck PAL Awards Gala. Baker is also a member of the Advisory Board of the NHL's Los Angeles Kings.
Sports
Baker played hockey at Colgate University from 1988 to 1992 and played on its ECAC Championship Team in 1990. Baker also played professional hockey for the Bakersfield Condors and the Quad City Mallards after 10 years of not playing. He wrote a book about his experience, They Don't Play Hockey in Heaven. Baker previously worked as a columnist for NHL.com, and coaches youth hockey.
