CNN Anchor and Correspondent Amara Walker to Exit
The "CNN This Morning Weekend" co-anchor's departure comes after more than a decade at the network The post CNN Anchor and Correspondent Amara Walker to Exit appeared first on TheWrap.
“CNN This Morning Weekend” co-anchor Amara Walker is leaving the news network after more than a decade.
In a Thursday statement, Walker said she decided to “seize on this moment of change in our industry and take a hiatus from TV news.”
“I’m a journalist at heart, but I have other professional passions as well. The timing couldn’t be better to embark on the next chapter,” she added. “I have other professional goals that I haven’t been able to pursue given my full-time commitment to a breaking news TV schedule. I’m excited about all that is to come and the opportunities that lie ahead.”
“In my 10 years with CNN, I’ve had the privilege of working on nearly all of its platforms, as an anchor for CNN, CNN International and CNN Max, and also as a correspondent,” Walker continued. “Winning an Emmy Award recently was the icing on the cake. I felt this is the right time to take this step.”
Walker first joined CNN in 2013 as an as anchor for CNN International, where she distinguished herself as one of the lead breaking news anchors having covered a number of live major international news events.
She anchored the network’s coverage of the ongoing humanitarian and political crisis in Venezuela and the large-scale demonstrations against a controversial extradition bill in Hong Kong in June 2019. She also was live on the air as a fire ripped through Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in April 2019 and led the network’s initial coverage of the Ottawa shootings in 2014 at the Canadian Parliament, which was simulcast on CNN and CNN International.
Other major live events Walker has covered include the truck terrorist attacks in Nice, France, and the Berlin Christmas market in 2016, the 2017 Las Ramblas van attack in Barcelona, the attempted coup in Turkey in 2016, the 2015 deaths of Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew and Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah, the death of Ariel Sharon, the South Korea Sewol ferry disaster, the historic double canonization of John XXIII and John Paul II, the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 and the referendum in Crimea, which led to Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian region.
She was also live on the air as security forces stormed Kiev’s Independence Square, which ultimately led to the crisis in Ukraine.
As a correspondent, Walker reported on the 2021 Atlanta spa massacre and subsequent outcry from the Asian-American community against the increasing hate and racist incidents due to misplaced blame for the COVID-19 pandemic and Donald Trump’s rhetoric. She also co-hosted the primetime special “Afraid: Fear in America’s Communities of Color” with Anderson Cooper, Victor Blackwell and Ana Cabrera.
Walker was also part of the the 2020 presidential election night team covering Trump’s repeated attacks against the Georgia Secretary of State baselessly claiming fraud. Her subsequent reports focused on the investigations into Trump’s phone call pressuring the Secretary to “find” more votes after his loss to Joe Biden. She also reported on the presidential vote recount in Georgia.
She was nominated for an Emmy award for her breaking news coverage of the Manchester Arena bombing attack during an Ariana Grande concert in 2017. In 2024, she was awarded an Emmy for her breaking news coverage of the Israel-Hamas War, after Oct. 7, 2023.
“In Amara’s more than 10-year distinguished and award-winning career at CNN, she has helmed numerous breaking news stories from the anchor desk and reported from the field on major events across the U.S.,” a CNN spokesperson told TheWrap. “She’s been a wonderful and deeply respected colleague at CNN. We know she will continue to find success in her new pursuits.”
In addition to “CNN This Morning Weekend,” Walker also anchors “CNN Newsroom” on CNN Max and CNN International, which airs Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 8 a.m. ET. A successor for Walker’s slot on CNN’s weekend morning program, which is co-anchored by Blackwell, has not been announced.
The post CNN Anchor and Correspondent Amara Walker to Exit appeared first on TheWrap.
