Breaking: Longtime CNN Anchor Is Out

Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s longtime chief international anchor, announced Monday that she will leave the network next summer, ending a 43-year career that made her one of its most recognizable journalists.

Amanpour, 68, said she would gradually reduce her duties before departing at the end of June 2027. She said the decision followed months of consideration.

“After many months of thought and a few sleepless nights,” Amanpour said she had decided to separate from CNN after 43 “fantastic years.”

Her daily programming on CNN and PBS is set to end in December 2026. CNN International’s “Amanpour” will move to a weekly schedule early next year, then conclude in May. She plans to continue reporting and traveling on assignment for CNN during the transition.

Her PBS program, “Amanpour & Company,” will also end in December. Amanpour said she will continue working on “The Ex Files,” the podcast she hosts with her former husband, Jamie Rubin, a former State Department official.

CNN CEO Mark Thompson told employees in an internal memo Monday that he and Amanpour had discussed her plans for several months. He said he was sorry to see her go but had come to accept that the timing was right for her “both personally and professionally.”

The announcement reportedly surprised some CNN staff. One employee called Amanpour the network’s “reigning titan,” while another described her as the “heart and soul” of CNN.

Amanpour joined CNN in 1983 as an entry-level assistant on the foreign desk. She went on to report from major conflicts around the world, helping build the young cable network’s profile in international news. Her early assignments included the Gulf War, followed by coverage from Bosnia, Rwanda, Afghanistan, Iraq, Ukraine and Iran.

She served as CNN’s chief international correspondent from 1992 to 2010 before becoming its chief international anchor. Her signature interview program has aired on CNN International since 2009.

Amanpour briefly left CNN in 2010 to join ABC News and host “This Week.” She returned to CNN in 2012 after a relatively short period at the rival network.

Her departure comes as CNN enters a major corporate transition. Skydance completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery earlier this month, placing CNN and CBS News under the same corporate ownership.

Amanpour has previously voiced concern about Skydance’s approach to CBS News and the possibility of similar changes at CNN. She did not cite the acquisition as a reason for leaving. In May, she said she was “concerned” about developments at CBS News under Skydance’s leadership.

Her announcement also included a defense of journalistic independence. Amanpour said she would continue supporting CNN’s tradition of independent reporting. Republicans and other critics have argued that the network’s coverage has leaned left in favor of Democrats for years.

Amanpour said journalists face significant political, financial and physical pressures, and said she intended to remain “fiercely independent” during her remaining time at CNN and afterward. Critics have questioned what that independence means in practice, pointing to the network’s perceived political slant.

She ended her statement with a phrase that has long reflected her approach to journalism: “always be truthful, not neutral.”

Amanpour has also faced criticism over her reporting. In 2020, Israeli officials and the Anti-Defamation League objected after she invoked Kristallnacht while discussing the Trump administration. She later walked back the remarks.

More recently, she drew criticism over aspects of her coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, including an inaccurate description involving the killing of an Israeli family. Amanpour apologized.

She said she expects to pursue additional projects after leaving CNN.