She’s been known (and bashed) for being radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh’s former love interest, but now CNN veteran anchor Daryn Kagan says taking herself out of the media spotlight. After a 12-year run on CNN, Kagan is quitting her high profile job to concentrate on a “higher calling.”
Kagan told fellow reporters that she wants to find out “if there’s a business in good news.” The anchor is planning to depart CNN in September and turn her attention to creating a website devoted to showcasing inspirational stories.
“I think there is a void in the straight news business now, (which is) lacking a certain spirituality,” Kagan told reporters on Thursday. “I think most people live in a space where they are looking for meaning in life and good in the world and that is not necessarily reflected in straight news coverage right now.”
Kagan says her site, darynkagan.com, which is set to launch on November 13 is not affiliated with a specific religious group, rather she hopes it will be a venue that will attract both religious and non-religious people seeking to find inspiration. Kagan says the site will include audio, video and print reports and its content will be similar to what is currently featured in a regular feature of her CNN program called “Your Spirit.”
Recent “Your Spirit” segments have included a profile of a quadriplegic who wrote letters to his autistic grandson collected in the book “Letters to Sam: A Grandfather’s Lesson on Love, Loss, and the Gifts of Life” and an interview with a laid-off flight attendant who walks the streets of Atlanta twirling a baton.
Kagan says while she will miss covering news on a daily basis, she is more concerned with creating a place where people can visit when they need spiritual uplifting. “It’s important to be informed but I also think it’s important to be inspired,” said Kagan.
I have been following Kagan’s career since her days as a sports reporter in Arizona. I hope that her project succeeds. She’s making a career move that I don’t think I would be brave enough to make and keep in mind that not only is the site independent from any and all religious organizations, Kagan says she had no financial backer for her Web endeavor other than herself.