A longtime CNN anchor who spent more nearly two-and-a-half decades at the struggling network has announced her departure as ratings continue to slump.
Christine Romans, the longtime anchor of CNN’s “Early Start” and its chief business correspondent, called it quits late last month, according to the New York Daily News.
“During Friday’s on-air sendoff, she announced that she will leave the cable news channel after nearly a quarter of a century, with that day being her last,” the outlet reported.
Romans told her viewers, “I’ve decided it’s time for a new chapter,” adding that though she’s “moving on from CNN, [she] will still be watching.”
“It has been a pleasure waking up early for you for so many years to get your morning started,” she continued. “I love CNN dearly. I have loved my 24-year run here … I am full of gratitude for my CNN family. It is a family. Everybody here are my friends. And I am excited for the challenges ahead.”
The Hollywood Reporter noted that Romans just recently made the decision to leave and had no plans to join a rival network, but that remains to be seen.
For the time being, the 5 a.m. EDT news show will remain in the programming lineup with “a rotating array of anchors until making a permanent decision about assigning talent to the show,” Variety reported.
“It’s impossible to sum up 24 wonderful and transformative years at CNN, but here it goes: five elections, a dot-com boom and bust, 9/11, a housing bubble and financial crisis, and a global pandemic,” Romans said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “Oh… and a wedding, three baby boys, three books, and 10 years of 3 a.m. wake-up calls!”
“I’ve climbed the mountain and it’s time for me to climb a new one,” Romans, who is the author of “Smart Is the New Rich Money Guide for Millennials,” went on. “But I’m forever grateful to have worked alongside some of the most talented journalists in the business.”
Her departure comes at a time when CNN continues to struggle to gain traction with viewers. While left-wing rival MSNBC gained viewers over the summer, CNN did not, shedding “21% of its 25-to-54 viewers in May,” The Street reported.
Earlier this month, a reportd noted that CNN hired two producers from Fox News, the network that CNN has criticized for years.
“Kaitlan Collins’ new primetime show The Source has hired a former producer from Maria Bartiromo’s program while Jake Tapper just tapped an EP from Fox News Sunday for his weekday program. The decision is being called hypocritical by insiders since Tapper often trash-talks the number one cable network on air, Fox News,” Radar Online noted.
“As we first reported, Collins’ new shows could use some help after launching to dismal numbers. According to Nielsen Media Research, Collins’ new primetime show The Source debuted at 9 PM and was beaten by Fox News’ Hannity by triple digit percentage. Collins’ show, which had former VP Mike Pence as a guest, was also beaten by repeats of Golden Girls, SpongeBob SquarePants, South Park, King of Queens, Seinfeld, and Friends,” the outlet added.
For its part, CNN appears to be working to shed its left-wing image. In recent weeks, hosts and guests have been more critical of Democrats and even have offered some measure of support to former President Donald Trump.
For instance, earlier this month, a legal analyst at the network took Trump’s side in a case handed down by a judge in Georgia pertaining to an investigation into alleged election interference in 2020.
Elie Honig defended Trump’s politicization of the case against him while riffing on Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney after he smacked the former president in an order denying Trump’s legal motion to quash the grand jury investigation headed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and to have her “disqualified” from the case.
“I’m going to take issue with that statement by the judge. There’s nothing illegal about politicizing an indictment! You’re actually allowed to do that. You’re allowed to fundraise off of ‘I’ve been indicted, and this is unjust,’” Honig argued.
