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Amara Walker, co-anchor of “CNN This Morning Weekend,” revealed on Thursday that she will be leaving the network after ten years, attributing her decision to a “change in our industry.”
“I’ve decided to seize on this moment of change in our industry and take a hiatus from TV news,” the Emmy-winning journalist told Deadline, without providing further details.
Her announcement follows the recent departure of CNN’s chief domestic correspondent, Jim Acosta, whose 10 a.m. time slot was removed from its regular schedule. Acosta, in his final on-air remarks, criticized Trump and urged viewers not to “give in to the lies.”
Walker, who has been with CNN for nearly a decade, also anchors “CNN Newsroom” on CNN Max and “CNN International.”
“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 said in her departure statement.
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. 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. Winning an Emmy Award recently was the icing on the cake. I felt this is the right time to take this step.”
Walker and her CNN colleagues were honored with an Emmy last year for their coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Joining CNN in 2013 as an anchor for “CNN International,” Walker reported on major events such as the 2021 Atlanta spa shootings, Hong Kong protests, and the Notre Dame Cathedral fire.
A CNN spokesperson praised Walker as a “wonderful and deeply respected colleague,” stating, “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. We know she will continue to find success in her new pursuits.”
No replacement has yet been named for Walker’s role on the weekend morning show, where she co-anchors with Victor Blackwell.
