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Abby Phillip talks to CNN viewers six days a week on programs including “News Night” and “Table for Five.” But she may have even more to say in weeks to come.
Phillip has tapped Envisionary Management, a management firm run by veteran talent representative Jon Rosen, to act on her behalf in discussions with media employers, according to two people familiar with the matter. Rosen referred a query to CNN, and CNN declined to make executives available for comment. Their alliance was stuck several months ago, according to these people.
Rosen, a former executive at WME, in recent years has worked for media personalities including Bobby Flay, Robin Roberts, Willie Geist and Stephen A. Smith ,among others. In Smith’s case, Rosen assisted in devising a new contract with Walt Disney and ESPN that gives the sportscasting veteran the chance to develop other business under his own aegis.
Phillip hasn’t been at CNN as long as anchors such as Wolf Blitzer or Anderson Cooper, but her place in the network’s pantheon of personalities has become more noticeable in recent months. “News Night,” one of CNN’s more unorthodox programs, has won traction among key viewers — people between 25 and 54 — by featuring a roundtable of often ungovernable panelists who squabble over the headlines of the day, and routinely assent to Phillips’ journalist authority. She is able to navigate among outspoken personalities including conservative commentator Scott Jennings and centrist Republican Ana Navarro, as well as other partisans.
The show’s ratings are good for CNN, but the network continues to grapple with how to keep viewers coming in regularly. In 2025, CNN saw its primetime viewership in the 25-54 demographic fell 31% from the prior year, according to data from Nielsen, while its overall viewership in the same time period fell 16%.
Some critics and observers have noticed how different the program is for CNN, which for years has tried to put more spotlight on newsgathering and less on so-called “hot talk.” CNN CEO Mark Thompson, who has championed other non-traditional offerings, including Saturday night comedy-news hybrids led by Roy Wood Jr. and Bill Maher, is said to have been a strong proponent of the format for Phillips’ show, which shares a name with a previous hour-long CNN program anchored by Aaron Brown.
Her “Table for Five” offers a similar format on the network Saturday-morning schedule.
Phillips’ representation decision surfaces as Warner Bros. Discovery is pursuing a spin off of its traditional cable assets after striking a deal to sell its studio and HBO Max streamer to Netflix.
CNN may need to keep an eye on its relationships with key talent after its future parent becomes more dependent on the revenue and profit it generates. Warner recently disclosed that CNN was expected to generate $600 million in profit in 2026, down from what was once $1 billion each year around the 2016 and 2020 elections. The company also projected that CNN generate revenue of $1.8 billion in 2026, rising by $100 million in each of the next four years to hit $2.2 billion by 2030.
English (US) ·