Jake Tapper Announced as New Host of State of the Union

CNN (DStv 401) has announced that Senior Washington Correspondent, Jake Tapper, will take up the position of permanent host of their Sunday politics show, State of the Union.

This follows months after long time host, Candy Crowley, unceremoniously left CNN late last year, with many inside sources claiming she was pushed out.

Since then, the Sunday show, which airs live in the afternoon here in South Africa followed by a repeat later at night, has been hosted by a rotating group of guest hosts, all of which hold positions within CNN currently.

 Tapper joined CNN at the end of 2012 from the US's ABC News and has been covering news from Washington, D.C. for over 14 years. Early in 2013 he launched The Lead, a daily news show on CNN in the US that is often critically acclaimed as being the best news show on cable news.

 “I am thrilled that Jake will take on this additional role at such a pivotal time in the election cycle,” CNN president Jeff Zucker said in a statement. “He has the perfect combination of skills that make him uniquely qualified — he’s a relentless reporter, a gifted storyteller, and a terrific interviewer who doesn’t stop until he gets answers. We are lucky to have him on both ‘The Lead’ [which airs on the US version of CNN] and ‘State of the Union.'”


He is not entirely unknown to South African viewers though. Whenever there is major breaking news events from the U.S. or around the world, he would often step in as anchor, and during last year's US mid term elections he co-anchored the channel's coverage with Anderson Cooper and Wolf Blitzer.

Jake Tapper takes over as the new host of CNN's State of the Union in June.

Candy Crowely Leaving CNN

Candy Crowley, moderator of CNN's State of the Union which airs on a Sunday afternoon here in SA,  is resigning from the network after 27 years.

She has also been seen on other CNN programming, providing political reports and commentary and also contributing greatly during Election cycles.

She took the helm of State of the Union in 2010, after John King stepped down to host another show on CNNUS.

Her work culminated in 2012 when she became the first woman in 20 years to moderate a presidential debate.

She moderates her final State of the Union this Sunday, where she will interview former US President George Bush.

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Below is CNN Boss, Jeff Zucker's full note to staff:

December 5, 2014

In her 27 years at CNN, Candy Crowley has been one of the most important and impactful journalists on our air. Since she joined us in 1987, her assignments have taken her to all 50 states, covering a broad range of political stories, including presidential, congressional and gubernatorial races. Candy made her mark covering the presidential campaigns of Pat Buchanan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, Bob Dole, Jesse Jackson, Edward Kennedy, John Kerry, Barack Obama, Ronald Reagan and Mitt Romney. And as we all remember, she made her mark yet again in 2012 when she became the first woman to moderate a presidential debate in 20 years.

To say she lives and breathes politics is more than an understatement. She has an innate ability to sense its nuance, push its limits, and ask questions that others won’t. She is beloved in Washington even by those that she so skillfully takes to task on Sunday mornings. And she’s an award-winning journalist – taking home everything from a Peabody and Emmys to an Edward R. Murrow award. She is a television news icon.

Thus, it is with mixed emotions, that I wanted to let you know that Candy has let us know that she has made the decision to move on, so she can embark on the next chapter of her already prolific career. As difficult as it is for us to imagine CNN without Candy, we know that she comes to this decision thoughtfully, and she has our full support. There will be more time in the weeks ahead for all of you who have been lucky enough to work with Candy to share your own thanks for all she has done. But for now, on behalf of everyone at CNN, I want to extend my sincere gratitude and appreciation.

Jeff