Best was born in October 1938 in Harrisburg, St. Paul River in
Montserrado County, Liberia to
Americo-Liberian parents of West Indian descent. He studied at St. Patrick's Elementary School on Snapper Hill, Monrovia. He entered
Booker Washington Institute in 1959, graduating with a diploma in agriculture. On 2 December 1963, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in English and political science from
Cuttington University (CU) after studying there since 1960. He resigned from the AACC in 1980 and returned to Liberia. Under the Presidency of
Samuel Doe, the
Daily Observer was subject to sustained political harassment. The
First Liberian Civil War caused Best to relocate his family by fleeing to The Gambia on 1 August 1990. In October 1994, following
Yahya Jammeh's
military coup, Best was expelled from Gambia, it was eventually shutdown by tax authorities on 23 August 2017 for non-compliance of its tax obligations. Best, along with several of his reporters was arrested on 21 October 1994 and detained for 36 hours, before being deported back to Liberia on 30 October 1994. He married Mae Gene Traub on July 17, 1971. The couple have eight children, including two adopted children. ==Awards==