Whatever Happened To Robin Meade?

Morning TV has been rocked by some seriously notorious scandals, from the sketchy double life of Matt Lauer to the secret war between "CBS This Morning" and "Good Morning America." However, amid all the drama, there was always one anchor who hit all the right notes: Robin Meade. Interestingly, while she never gained the recognition of some of her CNN colleagues, she consistently outperformed them. Fans will recognize her from "Morning Express with Robin Meade," a show that ran on CNN's sister network HLN for two decades and outshone many of its counterparts, including MSNBC's "Morning Joe." Meade was so well-liked, in fact, the Miami Herald even speculated whether she might take over hosting duties on CNN's "American Morning" in 2010.

Meade, who hails from Ohio, got her start working at local stations before landing gigs in Miami and Chicago and eventually landing at CNN in 2001. There, she flourished. "[She's] the best kept secret in morning news," Albie Hecht, executive vice president and general manager of HLN, told Variety in 2015. Jeff Zucker, president of CNN Worldwide, agreed. "Watch Robin for two minutes and you're hooked," he enthused. "She is one of the best morning personalities, period." And yet, despite all of the rave reviews, she suddenly disappeared in 2022. Here's what happened to Robin Meade.

When Robin Meade first joined the CNN family in 2001, she couldn't have imagined just how difficult her first day would be. Meade started with HLN's predecessor, CNN Headline News, on September 11, 2001, but she immediately rose to the challenge, showcasing her reporting skills, as well as her compassion. Just two months later, she was promoted to morning show anchor. As CNN Headline News transformed into HLN, so did Meade's show, becoming "Robin & Company" in 2005, then "Morning Express with Robin Meade" in 2007. She became an HLN staple, and when the network shifted focus to true crime in 2018, it stopped all live news programming, except for Meade's five-hour morning block. In fact, she was such a fan favorite that, in 2021, HLN invested in a big marketing campaign to mark Meade's 20 years on the air. "She's so darn good," CNN executive vice president Ken Jautz told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "She's a burst of energy every morning and she can connect with viewers like nobody else."

Unfortunately, by December 2022, that was no longer enough. The Los Angeles Times confirmed CNN was pulling the plug on "Morning Express" and ending all live programming on HLN to save money. Just a few days later, Meade signed off the air, thanking her team and all of the viewers. "Waking up with you has been the joy of my life," she wrote on Instagram. "You are my morning sunshine."

Robin Meade's career was dealt a curveball when CNN decided to shut down HLN's live programming at the end of 2022, but it was by no means tarnished. Although Meade had yet to return to the anchor chair as of July 2024, her life-long contribution to journalism was honored in November 2023 when she was inducted into the Atlanta Press Club Hall of Fame. Taking to Instagram to celebrate the milestone, she thanked her faithful viewers and cheekily addressed her new radical 'do. "You may have noticed, I've gone blonde!" she wrote. "But it doesn't switch what's inside: a kid from the middle of a cornfield who is thankful for you."

As part of the celebration, Meade was lauded by friends and colleagues, including Dr. Sanjay Gupta. "I'm a doctor; I take care of patients, but you, my friend, are good medicine for the masses," he praised in a video tribute. Former co-host Melissa Knowles added that working alongside Meade had changed her profoundly. "The impact it's had on who I am as a storyteller is hard to measure," she enthused. During her acceptance speech, Meade told the audience that her goal on the show was simple: "I hope you felt like you had an emotional guardian on patrol for you every morning," she said, per The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Given that she was America's longest-running morning show news anchor (surpassing Matt Lauer in September 2022), we'd say it was mission accomplished.

Robin Meade has always been close to her HLN work family. A look through her various social channels reveals posts going back years in which she can be seen hanging with her "squad" outside of working hours. In 2016, for example, she enjoyed a beach day with Jennifer Westhoven and tweeted, "Best kind of co-workers: ones you're looking forward to seeing even when you're off the clock." Similarly, in 2019, she posted vacation snaps on Facebook, which included boating with former producer Jen Dixon and then-executive producer Melody Taylor. "You know you got a good team when you want to hang with current or former colleagues after work!" she enthused.

Indeed, the bond the crew created was so strong that, despite their HLN days being over, they still spend time together. In March 2023, Meade posted to Instagram that she loved getting house visits from Westhoven. That May, she and Westhoven were joined by Callie Dauler and Bob Vandillen for an afternoon hang. "We used to work through breakfast together — now we make time to lunch together," Meade wrote on Facebook. That same month, the entire "Morning Express" crew (minus Westhoven and Coy Wire) also headed to Atlanta's Splatter Studio to have some (messy) fun with paint. "Reunion of the former a.m. anchors!" Meade wrote on X. "I missed these folks so we thought up something fun to do."

When Robin Meade commits to something, she's in it for the long haul. Similar to her lengthy career with HLN, she's enjoyed married life for over three decades. Meade and Tim Yeager wed in 1993, and their union has flourished since. In 2019, while marking their 26th wedding anniversary, Meade shared their simple key to success, writing on Facebook: "Marriage advice: marry the love who makes you laugh!" And now that she no longer has to wake up at 3 a.m. every day, she and Yeager have been able to enjoy even more quality time together. In fact, since leaving TV, Meade has been spending more time with all of her loved ones and filling her Instagram with sweet memories.

Just days after her show was cut, she was all smiles as she celebrated her uncle's 100th birthday. Then, in July 2023, she shared a yearly family tradition with fans on Instagram. "The first 'mess of green beans' each year is a BIG DEAL for the Meade's," she explained. "Dad plants & picks them. Mom preps & pressure cooks them. Everyone else's job? To eat them." Jump to May 2024, and she was back home in Ohio, spending more quality time with her folks before celebrating her nephew's high school graduation just days later. Then, in July, the family was together once more, this time to celebrate the 4th of July. "My brother, sister-in-law, nieces and their fellas took on the Georgia heat to spend time with us," she captioned the Instagram post.

Surprisingly, there are many celebrities with secret singing careers, and Robin Meade is one of them. Growing up, she actually wanted to be a full-time musician, but her dad shut down the idea. She eventually found journalism, but her passion for singing never really disappeared. When she competed in beauty pageants (she was crowned Miss Ohio in 1992), her talent was singing. Then, she revisited her love of writing songs in 2011 and actually released a full-length country album called "Brand New Day." She followed that up with another, "Count on Me," in 2013, telling USA Today that music and journalism really aren't all that different. "You're writing about loves and wins and losses, just like you are for a news story," she mused. Over the years, she's also performed live, singing with David Foster and taking the stage at CMAFest 2014.

What's more, Meade has found a way to give back through music. As someone who likes to use her fame to help others, she's regularly supported various charitable causes, including St. Jude. In 2019, she put her voice to good use, singing at The Warburton to raise money for the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, then again at another St. Jude fundraiser that same year.