Christiane Amanpour to leave CNN after four decades as Ellison era begins

Published Updated
0
Christiane Amanpour, CNN's Chief International Anchor, speaks at the Sir Harry Evans Investigative Journalism Summit in London, the UK on May 15, 2024. — Reuters
Christiane Amanpour, CNN's Chief International Anchor, speaks at the Sir Harry Evans Investigative Journalism Summit in London, the UK on May 15, 2024. — Reuters

CNN’s chief international anchor Christiane Amanpour will leave next year, after 43 years with the network, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Monday.

The news channel has recently come under the ownership of Skydance, whose Chief Executive Officer David Ellison has faced criticism over his stewardship of CBS News.

“After thinking carefully for several months … I’ve decided to separate from CNN, my partner of 43 fantastic years,” Amanpour said in a video statement, joking that it was “longer than many marriages”.

She added that her daily show on CNN would conclude at the end of this year, but that she would continue hosting ‘Amanpour’ once a week through to June 2027.

Thanking her TV crew and colleagues, Amanpour highlighted that it was the “teams and the camaraderie we built that counts so much”.

Amanpour, whose first major assignment was covering the first Gulf War, went on to report on conflicts in Bosnia, Rwanda, Afghanistan, Ukraine and Iran.

Skydance, formerly Paramount Skydance, completed its $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros Discovery earlier this month, bringing CNN and CBS News under one roof.

CNN chief Mark Thompson and CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss kept their roles, with both reporting to Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz.

Lawmakers have criticised Ellison for tailoring news coverage at CBS News to favour US President Donald Trump.

Opinion

Editorial

Eating grass for AI
Updated 19 Oct, 2026

Eating grass for AI

As dependence on AI grows, the bill could reach hundreds of millions of dollars by the end of the decade.
Climate exodus
Updated 19 Oct, 2026

Climate exodus

Climate displacement could then become another source of instability unless governments prepare for it together.
Settler terrorism
19 Oct, 2026

Settler terrorism

ISRAEL’S genocidal violence in occupied Gaza has understandably captured the world’s attention. Yet another...
State of denial
Updated 18 Oct, 2026

State of denial

If the Taliban regime commits to preventing groups based on its soil from attacking neighbouring states, the process of normalisation and regional integration of Afghanistan can begin.
Suffering in silence
18 Oct, 2026

Suffering in silence

TOO many Pakistani children have nowhere to turn when abused online. An estimated 1.5m internet-using children aged...
Export imperative
18 Oct, 2026

Export imperative

THE government’s efforts to boost Pakistan’s external sector through diversified financing, higher foreign...