Photo:Sonja Flemming/CBS
Sonja Flemming/CBS
Lisa Lingis embarking on a new adventure.
The longtime journalist is bringing her reporting prowess to CBS News as a contributor starting this summer, where she’ll cover a wide range of topics across CBS News broadcasts and platforms.
“Over the years, there have been so many stories that I’ve come across that may not have warranted a whole long-form hour,” she tells PEOPLE. “And so the opportunity to get to do these shorter pieces is really exciting because you know, the people I’m wanting to feature, their stories are as worthy of telling regardless of however long we have to be able to tell the story.”
“It sounds like a very big broad topic, but I think it will allow me to really kind of hone in on so many of the sort of micro issues around this area: technology’s impact on the behavioral health of kids on our workforce, on the future of entertainment and media.”
Ling’s move to CBS News comes five months after CNN aired the final two episodes ofThis is Life with Lisa Ling, which was a casualty of the cable news network’s broader budget cuts. Over the course of nine seasons, the documentary series explored topics like the shifting boundaries around modern love, America’s epidemic of alcoholism and mental illness in Ling’s hometown of Los Angeles. The journalist also trekked across the U.S. for the HBO Max original seriesTake Out, where she examined different Asian American communities and cuisines.
David Livingston/Getty
“I’ve been doing this for over 30 years,” she says. “I consider my work to be quite experiential in nature. … It’s never been more important to have this kind of really human-centered reporting.”
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At CBS News, Ling will be encouraged to deliver more of her trademark reportage.
“Lisa delivers some of the most authentic, human and revealing interviews because of how she embeds with communities and the people she covers,” CBS News president and co-head of CBS Khemlani said in a statement. “It gives her and us a chance to communicate the pulse of the country and the world in a more experiential way.”
The historic significance of CBS News, which has won numerous awards over the decades for its journalism isn’t lost on Ling.
“This is the home of[Walter] Cronkiteand whereConnie Chunganchored the evening news,” she explains. “So to me, it’s an honor to be able to carry on the mantle."
source: people.com
