Christiane Amanpour to exit CNN amid staffer concern on new owner Skydances plans for network

CNN’s Christiane Amanpour is leaving the network after more than four decades as one of the cable news network’s most recognizable faces, she said Monday.The announcement, which sent shockwaves through the chattering classes, came weeks after Paramount Skydance finalized its purchase of CNN’s parent company Warner Bros.Discovery, sparking anxiety in the newsroom.Amanpour, known for interviewing heads of state and reporting from conflict zones, made no mention of the drama in a departure note, in which she said she’d stick around until next June.“After many months of thought and a few sleepless nights, I have decided to separate from CNN, my partner of 43 fantastic years!” she said in a statement.The 68-year-old journo added that she “looks forward to interesting new projects down the line, and will always be rooting for CNN and maintaining its history of independent journalism.

Remember: always be truthful, not neutral.”Media sources speculated that Amanpour was leaving due to philosophical differences with CNN’s new owner, Skydance CEO David Ellison.She recently voiced “concern” over his purchase of WBD, pointing to CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss’ efforts to shake up the network since Ellison installed her in the role with a mandate to bring greater balance last year.“Clearly I’m concerned, and I’m not sure how much I’m allowed to say about the corporate thing that’s underway, but I am obviously as a person, as a journalist with a record concerned,” Amanpour said in May.“I’m concerned based on what’s happened to the other things that he’s taken over already, like CBS News, right?” Amanpour added.“I mean, do I have to list what’s happening there? I mean, hemorrhaging viewers, probably hemorrhaging money, this ideological realignment of CBS and the destruction potentially of ‘60 Minutes.’”Insiders pointed to Ellison’s pro-Israel stance as another reason why Amanpour may be leaving, citing criticism of h...