CNN unveiled its new morning show CNN This Morning on November 1 2022 replacing New Day previously hosted by Brianna Keilar and John Berman. In a bid to keep their early morning audience informed, CNN’s CEO Chris Licht announced they are ” seeking to be a disruptor of broadcast morning shows in the space.”
In September 2022, CNN announced the new hosts of the morning show would be Poppy Harlow, Kaitlan Collins, and Don Lemon. Lemon previously hosted his primetime show Don Lemon Tonight from 2014 to 2022.
Since the exit of former CNN CEO, Jeff Zucker, the network has made a lot of changes to recover from the drama and controversies surrounding Jeff. Chris Litch is known for establishing successful shows in his previous networks.
He is one of the brains behind CBS This Morning in 2012, Morning Joe at MSNBC, and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert which have become successful shows over the years.
Part of his memo as he became the CEO read; “…educating viewers and readers with straightforward facts and insightful commentary, while always being respectful of differing viewpoints. First and foremost, we should, and we will be advocates for truth.”
The CNN Morning Show joins other morning programs like Fox & Friends on Fox News, “Morning Joe” on MSNBC, CBS Mornings, and Good Morning America which command large audiences at the moment.
When he announced the new morning show in September, Chris believed the new hosts would deliver the promise of a game-changing morning news program.
“They are each uniquely intelligent, reliable, and compelling; together they have a rare and palpable chemistry. Combined with CNN’s resources and global newsgathering capabilities, we will offer a smart, bold, and refreshing way to start the day,” he said.
The End of CNN This Morning
CNN This Morning aired its last show on February 23 2024 and was replaced by CNN News Central. It all began when Don Lemon was abruptly fired from CNN in April 2023 and Kaitlan Collins left the show in May 2023.
Get to know the anchors of CNN This Morning below,
Related: Who are the hosts of Outnumbered on Fox News
Don Lemon
Don Lemon is well-known to CNN viewers for his late-night primetime show Don Lemon Tonight which he hosted from 2014 to 2022. Lemon began his journalism career working for WBRC as a news anchor in Birmingham, Alabama.
In the following years, he worked for WCAU in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, KTVI in St. Louis, Missouri, WMAQ-TV, NBC, and MSNBC. He joined CNN in September 2006 where he held several minor roles before becoming a primetime news anchor.
Lemon has hosted The Eleventh Hour and The Don Lemon Show before bagging his primetime news program Tonight with Don Lemon.
Lemon is also known for always calling out Trump and his administration. He once opened up his program with the statement “The president of the United States is racist. A lot of us already knew that.” This is after Trump called countries such as El Salvador, Haiti, and Honduras “shitholes” during a meeting on immigration.
As a versatile journalist, Lemon is ready to take on the new challenge and give neutral and non-biased journalism as CNN hopes to change its viewers’ perspectives of them.
Don Lemon was fired from CNN in April 2023.
Follow Don Lemon on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram
Poppy Harlow
Poppy Harlow, 40, is known for her work at CNN, Forbes, HLN, CNN International, and CNN Business. She has previously worked for CBS MarketWatch, NY1 News, and Forbes.com Video Network.
Harlow anchored CNN Newsroom from 9 A.M. to 11 A.M. alongside her co-anchor Jim Sciutto. She announced in 2021 that she will be taking a nine-month leave for her Law degree at Yale Law School. She graduated with a Master of Studies in Law (M.S.L.) in 2022.
As a Minnesota native, Harlow will help connect her viewers with their leaders across the country.
Follow Poppy Harlow on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Kaitlan Collins
Kaitlan Collins, 30, was previously the chief White House correspondent for CNN until 2022 when she joined Poppy Harlow and Don Lemon on their new morning show.
She studied at Prattville High School before joining the University of Alabama. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in political science and journalism in 2014.
Collins grew up in Alabama which is traditionally known to be a politically deep-red state of Alabama. Her family switched to CNN to watch her from their traditional preferred network Fox News.
During a Zoom chat with her fellow anchors, she said;
“It’s been fascinating. Since I started working at CNN, my dad watched every day. He turns it on in his office, and all his employees watch. It’s been fun to go home and see this narrative in the South of what CNN is dispelled when they watch it.”
Follow Kaitlan Collins on Instagram, and Twitter
CNN This Morning Anchors Salaries
As the anchors of the new CNN morning show, Don Lemon, Poppy Harlow, and Kaitlan Collins will likely earn an estimated annual salary of between $1 million – $10 million.
