Global perspective

Robyn Curnow presented key shows on CNN USA and CNN International

She anchored CNN International’s coverage of the 2016 election, Trump’s win and his presidency day-by-day as well as the 2020 elections and the challenges facing a Biden presidency after January 6 and extreme polarization in the United States. Curnow broke the news that President Trump had covid on both networks.

She was on air during the US withdrawal of Afghanistan and the fall out over the decision. She also anchored rolling coverage of the coup in Myanmar, the explosion in Beirut and the wildfires in Sydney and California.

Curnow was one of the few CNN anchors reporting from a studio during the covid pandemic. Fronting live programming from CNN Centre in Atlanta during from the first lockdowns to the devastating death rates in the US, the UK, India and elsewhere almost two years later.

Curnow was part of the winning team that received a DuPont Columbia award in 2020 for the death of Jamal Khashoggi.

Robyn first reported from Zimbabwe during the land invasions in 2000. Later she and the CNN team were banned from entering the country. She was detained during a later trip for reporting on the streets of Harare. She fronted CNN’s coverage of the fall of President Robert Mugabe, breaking the news that his regime was over. Curnow together with the team on the ground won the Royal Television Society’s award for Best Breaking News Coverage. The judges said,

“A model of how to cover an unpredictable breaking news story – from the heart of the action. It was a journalistic and technical triumph that caught the excitement of the moment but kept a cool head and ensured that tough questions about the future were asked as well”

She led breaking news coverage of a number of terror attacks including the attacks in Tunisia, Stockholm, Ivory Coast, Egypt and the aftermath of the Paris and Nice attacks. Curnow’s shows charted the rise and fall of ISIS over a number of years, including the devastation of the Syrian war, including the Russian targeting of civilians. She on air for the beginning stages of the fall of Mosul which earned her an Emmy nomination with the teams on the ground.

Curnow also earned an Emmy nomination for CNN’s coverage of the war in Yemen and Saudi Arabian aggression towards civilians. She earned another Emmy nomination for CNN’s team coverage of China’s repressive measures against the Uighers. The rise of Xi Jinping, his grip on power and his threats towards Taiwan and what that means for the Biden administration’s decision making featured regularly on her shows.

Curnow charted Russia’s increasing beligerance in recent years, leading up to the war in Ukraine. She hosted many discussions on Putin, NATO, the Skripal poisonings and the Wagner group.

Curnow has also interviewed intelligence operatives and former spies, on air and off-the-record, about the threats facing the globe and has an in-depth understanding of the issues involved in the intelligence worlds.

Curnow always enjoyed anchoring segments about country music, Dolly Parton and the International Space Station - once doing a live interview with the astronauts from the ISS and another time interviewing Buzz Aldrin about his wish to ‘Get the @&*% to Mars.’