FRESH FACES

CNN Axes Its Morning Show in Yet Another Shakeup

The move comes after months of questions regarding what will happen to the network’s mainstay news show.

CNN has finally unveiled what will happen with its morning show New Day: It’s over.

Instead, the network announced anchors Don Lemon, Poppy Harlow, and Kaitlan Collins will lead a “reimagined” morning show later this year.

“There is no stronger combination of talent than Don, Poppy and Kaitlan to deliver on our promise of a game-changing morning news program,” CEO Chris Licht said in a statement. “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.”

The new show, which has not yet been given a name, will be based in New York with a new set. Collins will leave her role as White House correspondent and move to New York, and the New Day production team will remain with the show in its new format. Lemon and Harlow’s teams will also remain in place for their successors.

The new cast replaces anchors John Berman and Brianna Keilar, who will move to new roles once the network sunsets the show, Licht said in an internal memo obtained by The Daily Beast.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank the two of them for their commitment to New Day and to CNN,” Licht said in the memo. “I am incredibly appreciative of their flexibility during this time.”

The show’s three-anchor model reflects Licht’s previous experience in revamping morning shows. Licht previously helped create MSNBC’s Morning Joe, and he is also credited with a reimagining of CBS’s This Morning. Just prior to his role as head of a global news network, he served as the executive producer of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

It also represents the largest talent shuffle since Licht joined the network. Since his debut in May, Licht has tried to rebrand CNN as a place for hard news and minimal opinion, arguing it needed to do away with the constant “breaking news” banners and move away from acknowledging “the Big Lie” by name. His strategy shifts—which came as the network’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, went through its own changes—also led to the ouster of the network’s top media reporter, Brian Stelter, and the departure of outspoken White House correspondent John Harwood.

Lemon’s move from 10 p.m. to early mornings leaves the network with the second gap in its primetime block, as it is still looking to fill its 9 p.m. hour vacated by Chris Cuomo, who was fired last December. Licht told staff that announcements on who will fill those hours—and Collins’ role as chief White House correspondent—will come “in the weeks ahead.”

“The next chapter of CNN is beginning to shape,” Licht said in the memo.

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Corbin BoliesMedia Reporter

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