The program succeeded New Day as CNN's morning show, and shortly thereafter began airing in simulcast on HLN, replacing that network's longtime morning show Morning Express with Robin Meade.
History
The promotion poster for CNN This Morning before the premiere
Chris Licht became the head of CNN in April 2022, succeeding Jeff Zucker following WarnerMedia's merger with Discovery Inc. to form Warner Bros. Discovery. During the company's first upfronts in May 2022, Licht announced plans for a new CNN morning show, stating that "we are seeking to be a disruptor of broadcast morning shows in the space, we believe we have the people and resources to do this."[1]
Licht has had prior experience with establishing morning shows at his past employers, with a particular emphasis on formats focusing upon panel discussions.[2][1] He launched Morning Joe at MSNBC in 2007, and CBS This Morning in 2012;[2][1] the latter was initially CBS's most successful format in the timeslot in years, but began to see instability and declines in 2017 after the dismissal of Charlie Rose due to sexual harassment allegations, and was ultimately rebooted as CBS Mornings in 2021.[3][4]
On September 15, CNN announced that Don Lemon would leave his primetime show Don Lemon Tonight and move to the new morning show, joined by fellow CNN anchors Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins.[5] On October 12, it was announced that the show will premiere on November 1 ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, and be titled CNN This Morning.[2] In March 2023, it was announced that Derek Van Dam would be joining as the program's meteorologist.[6]
On December 1, 2022, it was announced that the show would also be simulcast on HLN beginning on December 6, replacing Morning Express with Robin Meade.[7]CNN This Morning is the only news program remaining on HLN, and reports indicate it is being retained solely to fulfil contractual obligations to provide news content, as that channel otherwise shifts to a full-time true crime format.[8]
On April 24, 2023 after the airing of CNN This Morning, Lemon was fired from CNN.[9]
On May 17, 2023, Collins was announced as the network's 9 p.m. ET anchor, with her new program set to begin in June 2023. Her position with CNN This Morning will be filled on a rotating basis by current CNN staffers.[10]
On August 14, 2023, CNN named Phil Mattingly, who had been the network's chief White House correspondent, as Harlow's permanent co-anchor.[11]
Don Lemon (November 1, 2022 – April 24, 2023); fired after the April 24, 2023 airing of the program.[9] Lemon was replaced with rotating fill-in anchors. It was later decided to have only 2 co-anchors.
Kaitlan Collins (November 1, 2022 – May 25, 2023); departed the program after being named permanent host of CNN's 9 p.m. ET hour.[13]
