Born: 1979 (Randolph, Massachusetts)
Biography:
Audie N. Cornish (born October 9, 1979) is an American journalist and a former co-host of NPR’s All Things Considered. She is an anchor and correspondent for CNN and the host of The Assignment, a CNN Audio podcast. Cornish was born in Randolph, Massachusetts to Jamaican parents. She graduated from Randolph High School. She subsequently graduated from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst with a journalism degree.
During her years at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Cornish interned with NPR and worked with campus radio station WMUA. She had an early start in her journalism career, reporting for various media outlets including the NPR station WBUR, the Associated Press in Boston, and NPR on 10 southern states and Capitol Hill issues.
Cornish’s exceptional talent and dedication to her craft were recognized with the 2005 first prize in the National Awards for Education Writing for a study on the achievement gap between races. She is also a member of the National Association of Black Journalists.
In September 2011, Cornish replaced Liane Hansen as the host of NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday. Hansen had served as the show’s host for more than 20 years. Cornish’s impressive skills and insightful reporting soon gained her recognition and acclaim. At the end of the December 18, 2011, broadcast of Weekend Edition, Cornish announced that she would be leaving the program in January 2012 to co-host All Things Considered during the 2012 election year. She was replaced by Rachel Martin.
Cornish’s transition to All Things Considered was a result of Michele Norris’s decision to step down from the show during the 2012 election year, as her husband had taken a position in the Obama re-election campaign. NPR announced on January 3, 2013, that Cornish would remain as the host of All Things Considered and that Norris would instead return as a special correspondent.
Throughout her career, Cornish demonstrated a remarkable ability to engage and connect with audiences. Her thoughtful and incisive interviewing style made her an essential voice in the realm of journalism. All Things Considered, under Cornish’s hosting, reached an audience of 14 million listeners per week.
In August 2017, Cornish took a leave from NPR during her maternity leave. During this time, she also published occasional interviews in The New York Times Magazine. However, her impact on the field of journalism was far from over.
On January 4, 2022, Cornish announced her resignation from NPR to join The Great Resignation movement and try something new. Her departure followed the exits of NPR hosts Noel King and Lulu Garcia-Navarro, all of whom are persons of color. This loss of diverse voices at NPR highlighted the need for greater representation and inclusion in the media industry.
Outside of her work at NPR, Cornish has also been involved in other projects. From 2018 to 2019, she hosted Profile, a Buzzfeed News interview TV show released exclusively on Facebook. Cornish’s versatility as a journalist continues to shine as she takes on new endeavors in the industry.
Awards:
– 2005: First prize in the National Awards for Education Writing for a study on the achievement gap between races.