CNN journalist and anchor Poppy Harlow is leaving the community after practically twenty years. “Once I walked within the door at CNN in 2008, I used to be 25 years outdated and had by no means been on dwell TV. Inexperienced is an understatement!” Harlow wrote in a be aware to colleagues, shared with Vainness Truthful. “I grew up right here: as a journalist and as an individual,” she added. “This place has formed me as a frontrunner, taught me resilience, proven me the worth of perspective and methods to make exhausting choices.”
“It’s for these causes that I take this leap and go away CNN with a full coronary heart and deep gratitude,” Harlow continued, praising CEO and chairman Mark Thompson, government vice chairman for expertise, CNN Originals, and artistic improvement Amy Entelis, and the CNN administration group, who “have been fantastic and have given me the house to make this choice. I’m very grateful to them.” Her final week at CNN would be the first week of Could.
Harlow held varied reporting and anchor roles throughout her time at CNN, most just lately on CNN This Morning. The New York–primarily based morning present launched in 2022 below former CEO Chris Licht and was initially hosted by Harlow, Kaitlan Collins, and Don Lemon. The trio was short-lived: Lemon, who reportedly clashed along with his cohosts behind the scenes—and in at the very least one memorable occasion on air—was fired from CNN final April, whereas Collins departed just a few weeks later to anchor the community’s 9 p.m. hour.
In August, Phil Mattingly, CNN’s chief White Home correspondent, was named Harlow’s new cohost. However even with the brand new setup, rankings—already a battle for the present—continued to lag behind opponents: In January, CNN This Morning averaged 322,000 whole viewers, whereas MSNBC’s Morning Joe drew 988,000 and Fox’s Fox and Buddies drew 1.07 million. In February, CNN introduced that it will transfer away from this iteration of CNN This Morning, changing its hosts with anchor Kasie Hunt and transferring its begin time up an hour, to five a.m. The choice was a part of a shakeup of the community’s total morning schedule—the primary main programming change below Thompson—which might focus extra on straight information protection. Thompson mentioned the community would additionally discover new roles for Mattingly and Harlow; just a few weeks later, Mattingly was named chief home correspondent. Harlow, based on a supply conversant in the matter, was provided a brand new position concurrently Mattingly however finally turned it down.
“Poppy is a singular expertise who combines formidable reporting and interviewing prowess with a human contact that audiences have all the time responded to,” Thompson mentioned in a press release to VF. “She’s been a beautiful colleague at CNN, and we all know she may have a lot success in her future endeavors.”
“Poppy leaves CNN after greater than 16 memorable years, hundreds of hours within the anchor chair, and a whole bunch of stories from the sphere,” Entelis mentioned in a press release. “She made a mark on quite a few main tales together with monetary crises, the Paris terror assaults and the Boston bombing, however most notably enlightening interviews with the world’s high enterprise leaders, who trusted her as a result of she was powerful, honest, and well-prepared. Poppy is a superb journalist who units the usual for reporting with compassion and humanity, and we are going to miss her.”
Harlow’s subsequent act stays to be seen. She stored issues obscure in her memo, telling colleagues, “For now, my plan is to stroll our youngsters to high school and decide them up (hopefully they received’t get sick of me!), and to help the evolution of journalism in each approach I can, whereas preserving the human(ity) in it.”
Harlow’s full be aware to colleagues is beneath.
Once I walked within the door at CNN in 2008, I used to be 25 years outdated and had by no means been on dwell TV. Inexperienced is an understatement! I handed these three iconic purple letters within the corridor on day one and thought how fortunate I used to be to be right here.
The practically twenty years since have been a present. I’ve been impressed by you and discovered a lot from you – who’re (and can stay) expensive buddies. I grew up right here: as a journalist and as an individual. I used to be allowed to stumble, to falter, after which to attempt once more with the help and care of this CNN household. This place has formed me as a frontrunner, taught me resilience, proven me the worth of perspective and methods to make exhausting choices.