Who is new CNN CEO Amy Entelis?

Amy Entelis has been made the new interim CEO of cable network CNN.

The veteran journalist, who has steered CNN to success in the last decade, was put into the top position following the departure of Chris Licht. 

Entelis is the executive vice president for talent and content development for CNN Worldwide. 

She joined the network in 2012, and has since overseen 45 multi-part documentary series and 60 feature-length documentary films. In that time, she has received more than 110 awards and 445 nominations for her work at CNN, and even helped the network win its first Oscar with the documentary Navalny. 

Entelis built the CNN Original Series brand, bringing to audiences 12 seasons of the 13-time Primetime Emmy Award-winning Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown.

Amy Entelis attends the Tribeca Festival Tribeca Talks: Business of Entertainment with Jason Hirschhorn at Spring Studios on June 12, 2021

Born in Long Island New York, Entelis went to Vassar College before attending Columbia University  

She started her career at ABC News - and rose in the ranks over 30 years to become senior vice president for talent strategy, development, and research.

She is married to Charles Franklin Entelis and lives in New York City with her family. 

What is her role at CNN?

She is the senior talent executive, meaning that she is responsible for recruiting on-air talent for CNN's programs. 

But she was made the interim head of CNN following the departure of Chris Licht in June 2023.  

Until a permanent replacement is found, the network will be shepherded by Entelis, Virginia Moseley, EVP of editorial, and Eric Sherling, EVP of US programming. 

Entelis has received more than 110 awards and 445 nominations for her work at CNN, and even got the network's first Oscar win for the documentary Navalny

What happened to Chris Licht?

Chris Licht left CNN after a disastrous first year of trying to overhaul the network during which ratings slumped, profits shrank and staff revolted against him.

The final straw, it seems, was a scathing profile in The Atlantic, published over the weekend, in which Licht touted his own leadership abilities while disparaging the work of his staff in their reporting of topics like COVID-19 before he came on board, and made bizarrely self-congratulatory comments about losing weight.

In an announcement on June 7, Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav announced his departure.

'I have great respect for Chris, personally and professionally. The job of leading CNN was never going to be easy, especially at a time of huge disruption and transformation, and he has poured his heart and soul into it.

Chris Licht left CNN after a disastrous first year of trying to overhaul the network during which ratings slumped, profits shrank and staff revolted against him

'While we know we have work to do as we look to identify a new leader, we have absolute confidence in the team we have in place and will continue to fight for CNN and its world class journalism,' he said.

Licht took over from Jeff Zucker in May last year after Zucker's affair with Allison Gollust was revealed.

His mission was to overhaul the network, cleanse it of its inherent left-wing bias and boost ratings. 

As part of his strategy to bring the network back to the political center, he greenlit an hour-long townhall with Donald Trump that saw the former president railroad host Kaitlan Collins.

The special disgusted long-time employees, who said Trump should never have been given a platform.