Alex Marquardt, chief national security correspondent at CNN, says that he’s leaving the network after eight years.
He wrote on X, “Some personal news: I’m leaving CNN after 8 terrific years. Tough to say goodbye but it’s been an honor to work among the very best in the business. Profound thank you to my comrades on the National Security team & the phenomenal teammates I’ve worked with in the US and abroad.”
Marquardt did not identify his next career move. A CNN spokesperson declined to comment.
Marquardt testified earlier this year in a defamation trial against the network in a lawsuit brought by a security consultant, Zachary Young. He was featured in Marquardt’s 2021 report on the exorbitant fees being demanded on the black market to evacuate Afghans during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal. In one instance, Young’s image appeared on screen with the chyron, “Afghans trying to flee Taliban face black markets, exorbitant fees, no guarantee of safety or success.” The judge had left it up to the jury to decide whether the use of the term “black market” meant illegal or criminal activity.
A jury found the network liable for defamation and awarded him $5 million. The network then reached a settlement as the trial was to enter its next phase.
A CNN spokesperson said at the time, “We remain proud of our journalists and are 100% committed to strong, fearless and fair-minded reporting at CNN, though we will of course take what useful lessons we can from this case.”
Marquardt has covered a range of national security and foreign policy stories, and was in Ukraine when Russia invaded in 2022. He also covered the January 6th insurrection and the Black Lives Matter protests. Before CNN, he was foreign correspondent for ABC News based in Moscow, Jerusalem, Beirut and London. During an earlier stint with CNN, he was an embed reporter during the 2008 presidential election.
Marquardt has won multiple awards, including Emmy and Edward R. Murrow awards, for an undercover investigation of underage sex trafficking in the Phillippines.
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