I watch CNN out of sheer curiosity about the madness going on in the US, but more importantly because the face of CNN has been changing significantly over the past couple of years.
One young woman in particular, has been my reason for watching CNN, not just for her intelligent analysis but because of what she represents.
I have been following Abby D. Phillip’s career since 2017 when she joined CNN from the Washington Post. During the 2020 election, I religiously watched Abby and her two colleagues Jake Tapper and Dana Bash break down the politics as it happened in real time.
It was during one of those sessions last November that I watched a commentary by Abby that has since gone viral. It was just the day before the election was called in favour of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris when Abby made a profound observation: “For black women, this has been really a proving moment for their political strength... and not only would black women put Joe Biden in the White House, but they would also put a black woman in the White House as well. And that is the sort of historical poetry that I think we will live with for a long time.”
At that moment, watching Abby say those words, reminded me of why I absolutely like her.
Fast forward to this week. CNN announced new appointments and Abby was announced as the new anchor of Inside Politics, replacing John King on the highly rated Sunday morning political show.
This is a very big deal. For a young, black woman—a child of immigrants—living in a big country of over 300 million Americans to scale to the top of a highly competitive environment like CNN is no mean feat.
Abby, at 32, might have just pulled off the biggest meteoric rise in modern TV history; from a newspaper journalist appearing frequently on CNN to analyse politics, to getting hired by CNN in 2017 and now with her own show in such a short time is quite commendable.
This piece is not so much about Abby’s achievement but what she represents. She is not only “Next-Gen CNN” as the New York Times rightly observed, but proof that a woman can never be too young to be successful.
If Abby, at 32, can have her own CNN show, command millions of global audiences, sit at the same table as the gurus like Wolf Blitzer, John King, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, there is nothing that young women across the world cannot achieve.
And to those who are wedded to the idea that a woman is too young to lead, I hope you are watching Abby and reading this.
I can only wish Abby the best in this new role. I am here for this new phase of her life and I cannot wait to watch her show.
Indeed, as my friend likes to say, “This is the decade for women”.
