CNN anchor Rahel Solomon announced Monday that she is leaving the network, telling viewers her final broadcast will come at the end of the week. The surprise announcement came during the closing moments of her 5 a.m. show, “Early Start.”
“I have decided that this will be my last week at CNN. More to come on what’s next for me, but I’m really excited about this next chapter,” Solomon said during the sign-off.
Moments later, the program’s official X account posted a clip of her announcement. The network has not yet publicly detailed plans for her replacement. “Thank you to the team at Early Start,” Solomon said. “To the larger team here at CNN – I’m going to be cheering you on. I look forward to watching,” she added.
“So this is truly not goodbye, but see you soon,” she said. Solomon, 37, had recently returned from a six-month maternity leave in December. She stepped away from the desk last June and resumed her role late last year.
She took over as host of “Early Start” in March 2025 after joining CNN in 2022 from CNBC. Before that, she worked at CBS affiliates in Colorado and Philadelphia.
Solomon married Philadelphia attorney Marcel S. Pratt in July 2024, and the couple welcomed a daughter in 2025. Her departure comes just months after returning to the anchor chair.
Colleagues are said to be “supportive” of her decision to leave, according to a report. CNN has not publicly commented further on the circumstances surrounding her exit.
The departure comes at a time of uncertainty for the network. CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, is in the middle of a proposed sale to Paramount valued at more than $100 billion.
The potential deal has raised concerns among staff, with some reportedly wary of leadership changes under Paramount CEO David Ellison. Ellison has said CNN’s “editorial independence” would be maintained if the merger receives federal approval.
CNN anchor Jake Tapper emotionally told viewers on an episode of “The Lead” that Paramount Skydance is about to buy Warner Bros. Discovery, and potentially CNN, is involved after Netflix said it would not match Paramount’s $111 billion offer for WBD.
Netflix made a tentative deal to buy most of WBD, including HBO and the Warner Bros. movie studio, but not CNN. Paramount then made a counteroffer, and Netflix chose not to offer more. The U.S. and Europe will need to approve the purchase.
But according to reports, Paramount CEO David Ellison told the Trump administration that he would “make sweeping changes to CNN” if his company bought it. President Donald Trump spoke out about the drama in the media industry and said that “CNN must be sold.” Trump has been complaining about the network for a long time, saying that it is unfair to him.
When the news broke, Tapper came back from a break and told viewers that Netflix had dropped its bid and that Paramount was now the highest bidder for Warner Bros. and HBO. He also mentioned that Paramount wanted to buy CNN:
“So we have some breaking news in our national lead that affects everybody I’m looking at right now in the studio,” Tapper began.
“Moments ago, Netflix said it is declining to raise its offer for the purchase of Warner Bros. Studios and HBO, following the Warner Bros. Discovery board’s determination that Paramount, which is not just going for Warner Bros. Studios and HBO, but also the whole enchilada, including us here at CNN, Paramount has submitted a superior offer according to Warner Bros. Discovery’s board. As I’ve noted, Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN,” Tapper said.