‘Don’t Give Into the Lies’

After weeks of rumors, anchor Jim Acosta confirmed his departure from CNN live on-air on Tuesday, January 28 with a strong message. “Don’t give into the lies,” he warned as he departed the network during the second week of President Donald Trump‘s second term. His statement was given after CNN announced a schedule overhaul for its programming. Last week, a Los Angeles Times report stated that Acosta was considering quitting the network after CNN boss Mark Thompson asked him to move his show to the graveyard shift.

Acosta is one of CNN’s loudest critics of Trump, having become known for his fiery coverage as CNN’s Chief White House Correspondent during Trump’s first term. Acosta confirmed on Tuesday that he carefully considered moving to an alternative timeslot offered by CNN, but he “decided to move on.” The January 28 broadcast was his last at CNN after reporting for the network for nearly two decades (see his statement in the embedded video, below).

“I am grateful to CNN for the nearly 18 years I’ve spent here doing the news,” Acosta said in his final remarks on Tuesday. “People often ask me if the highlight of my career at CNN was at the White House, covering Donald Trump. Actually, no, that moment came here when I covered President Barack Obama’s trip to Cuba in 2016 and had the chance to question the dictator there, Raul Castro, about the island’s political prisoners. As the son of a Cuban refugee, I took home this lesson: it is never a good time to bow down to a tyrant.”

“I have always believed it’s the job of the press to hold power to account,” he continued. “I’ve always tried to do that here at CNN, and I plan on doing all of that in the future. One final message: Don’t give into the lies. Don’t give into the fear. Hold on to the truth and to hope. Even if you have to get out your phone, record that message: I will not give into the lies. I will not give into the fear. Post it on your social media so people can hear from you, too. I’ll have more to say about my plans in the coming days, but until then I want to thank all of you for tuning in. It has been an honor to be welcomed into your home for all these years. That’s the news. Reporting from Washington, I’m Jim Acosta.”

“Don’t give into the Lies”

As today marks Jim Acosta’s @acosta final day with @cnn after 18 years I speak on behalf of millions and millions of people here in the U.S. and worldwide who thank you for being amongst the very, very best in the business and setting the gold standard… pic.twitter.com/jEZiRBPY9C

— Jeff Storobinsky (@jeffstorobinsky) January 28, 2025

CNN released a statement following Acosta’s final moments on-air. The statement was shared by Brian Stelter, who also was ousted from CNN in 2022 but returned as a Chief Analyst in 2024.

“Jim has had a long, distinguished nearly 20-year career at CNN, with a track record of standing up to authority, for the first amendment and for our journalistic freedoms,” the network said. “We want to thank him for the dedication and commitment he’s brought to his reporting and wish him the very best in the future.”

CNN Chairman and Chief Executive Mark Thompson asked Acosta to consider moving his news program from a morning time slot to the “graveyard shift,” aka midnight to 2 a.m. ET, in a January 15 phone call.

Asking Acosta to move to a time slot with less viewership just days before Trump was to take office has been construed as CNN trying to capitulate to the whims of the president who threatens press for negative coverage of him.