Two months after the abrupt departure of CNN chief Chris Licht, interim leadership has made its first major programming moves including the completion of its primetime lineup and addition of a co-host in the mornings.
Abby Phillip, a rising star at CNN who has been the network’s Sunday morning host of “Inside Politics,” will take over the 10 p.m. slot once held by Don Lemon. (Licht had moved Lemon to mornings, an ill-fated move where he made comments construed as sexist that led to his firing a few months later.) CNN had left the 10 p.m. slot open for nearly a year.
Laura Coates, CNN’s chief legal analyst, will remain at 11 p.m.
These changes, which will roll out in the coming weeks, complete a primetime lineup that includes longtime host Anderson Cooper at 8 p.m. and Kaitlan Collins at 9 p.m., the last move Licht made before he was let go. The addition of Phillip at 10 p.m. also addresses concerns raised by some critics that CNN’s on-air diversity was lacking without Lemon.
Veteran anchor Alisyn Camerota, who had been hosting 10 p.m. on occasion, will now handle long-form projects largely for Cooper’s Sunday series “The Whole Story With Anderson Cooper.”
CNN’s primetime ratings have fallen sharply the past year and remain far behind those of MSNBC and Fox News. Across the entire day, CNN averaged 426,000 total viewers compared to MSNBC’s 723,000 and Fox News’ 1,071,000.
Over in mornings, where CNN has chronically had trouble garnering ratings, CNN’s chief White House correspondent Phil Mattingly will join Poppy Harlow, who has hosted the show solo since the departure of her founding co-hosts Collins and Lemon.
Kasie Hunt, CNN’s chief national affairs analyst, will take over the 5 a.m. “Early Start” show after Christine Romans exited last month.
During the day, the only change is the addition of new 3 p.m. show anchored by Pamela Brown, chief investigative correspondent. Jake Tapper (4-6 p.m.) Wolf Blitzer (6-7 p.m.) and Erin Burnett (7-8 p.m.) all remain in the same slots.
On weekends, former Fox News anchor Chris Wallace, who has been hosting a Friday night interview show, will add a 10 a.m. Saturday politics-oriented morning show. Longtime weekend host Victor Blackwell out of Atlanta will also host a new show on Saturdays at 8 a.m. Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s decorated chief international anchor, will host a new show at 11 a.m.
CNN’s chief congressional correspondent Manu Raju will take over “Inside Politics” on Sunday from Phillip.
Management is promoting younger talent in hopes of establishing a firmer future for the network.
In a joint statement among the four interim leaders Amy Entelis, David Leavy, Virginia Moseley and Eric Sherling, CNN noted: “One of CNN’s key differentiators is our deep roster of experienced journalists, reporters and storytellers. Many joined CNN early in their careers and have grown with the network throughout the years. They are extraordinarily talented and share the same CNN sensibility: versatility, determination and an inquisitive and empathetic approach to reporting the news.”
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