CNN’s Brooke Baldwin took an emotional goodbye on Friday during her last appearance as a presenter on “CNN Newsroom”.
The veteran presenter, who has anchored the show for over a decade, explained how she first received the position and thanked fans and her CNN colleagues for helping us push her over the years.
“Let me tell you a little secret: this job, my show here on CNN, was originally not going to be mine,” said Baldwin. “Over a decade ago there was an anchor – suddenly CNN took off and left this gaping hole in the afternoon. The then bosses quickly turned to me and they said, ‘Brooke, we need you to keep the chair warm. but for a week, until we actually find the person taking over this show. “Okay, guess what? I’ve kept this chair warm for almost 11 years.”
Baldwin shared some of the historic moments she had experienced during her anchor period for CNN, from the coronavirus pandemic to mass shootings that rocked the country.
“This job, which I’ve used my voice for over a decade, has been nothing short of a privilege,” Baldwin continued, taking a deep breath. “So to you at home, thank you. Thank you for trusting me. Thank you for holding me accountable. And thank you for all the love. I’m telling you I read all your DMs, okay, forward them.”
In her closing, she thanked viewers and her CNN team for holding her accountable and pushing her to get better. She said she was “better off leaving this place than I found it”.
She pointed to the recent increase in female journalists holding positions as White House correspondents as the final marker of change and progress.
“Let me tell you something when I saw all those women the other day,” she said. “I got up and cheered them on. So many women, black, white, brown. Progress. We need different voices to tell our stories from in front of the camera to the executive suites. We are making progress. are in, my parting words: get a little awkward. Speak and keep pushing. “
Baldwin announced her plans to leave CNN in February. She will release her book “Huddle: How Women Unlock Their Collective Power” later this month.