*Laura Coates is moving on up at CNN. The network announced Friday that she has been promoted to chief legal analyst.
As Mediaite reports, CNN credited Coates for having “played a central role in the network’s extensive legal programming, serving as an anchor for CNN’s prime time programs, hosting impactful specials and a CNN Town Hall.” She will continue guest anchoring across CNN programming, according to TheWrap.
Coates, an attorney, joined CNN as a legal analyst in 2016. Her promotion comes weeks after Don Lemon was fired from his primetime news program at the network.
Congratulations to @thelauracoates who has been promoted to CNN’s Chief Legal Analyst! Laura has played a central role in CNN’s extensive legal programming, serving as an anchor for CNN’s prime time programs, hosting impactful specials and a CNN Town Hall. https://t.co/pd62EoIMWF pic.twitter.com/P42yqjIpzW
— CNN Communications (@CNNPR) May 5, 2023
CNN’s Twitter post about her new gig received mixed reactions, with one user responding, “Congratulations Laura. I have always trusted your law opinions. I hope .@CNN doesn’t change you. But I trust that you will quit before this happens.”
Another Twitter user commented, “I wish she’d been given a full time anchor position, but this is better than not having her at all.”
A third added, “Laura is great but they did her dirty with the whole evening shows. Laura was supposed host an hour at least every night once Don Lemon left his time slot. She was great imo, then they made her share time with Alisyn Camerota then was effectively pushed off for Alisyn. So wrong.”
In April it was reported that Black staffers at CNN were outraged after network bosses passed on giving Coates a full-time gig after Chris Cuomo was canned. Instead, CNN hired white anchors with less experience, RadarOnline.com reported.
“The concern is that it’s all white people who don’t have experience anchoring,” a source told Insider at the time. “While surrounding them with [contributors who are] African American and people of color is a sleight of hand.”
READ MORE: Alex Trebek Wanted CNN’s Laura Coates As ‘Jeopardy’ Successor – Folks Wanna Know What Happened?
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