Poynter is reporting that CNN chief legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid is leaving the network to join MS NOW. Variety’s Brian Steinberg said Reid declined to renew her contract at CNN due to the uncertainty surrounding the pending acquisition of CNN parent company Warner Bros. Discovery by Paramount Skydance. Status’ Oliver Darcy reported that Reid, 43, expressed discomfort with the takeover and the unsettled future it has cast over CNN, including the possibility of Bari Weiss overseeing the network, as she does with CBS News. Reid’s departure marks the first major on-air talent to leave CNN ahead of the merger, with rumors suggesting other prominent figures like Anderson Cooper and Kara Swisher are also wary of the potential new ownership.
Poynter also highlighted ESPN's retraction of a story concerning NFL free-agent defensive lineman Michael Pennel Jr. ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio wrote that ESPN had reported Pennel was a “person of interest” in a Dominican Republic homicide investigation. ESPN later removed the story, issuing an update on June 18, 2026, stating the article “contained errors.” ESPN said Pennel’s representatives provided documentation, including travel and financial records, supporting his claim that he was not in the Dominican Republic when the woman disappeared. Awful Announcing’s Sam Neumann also covered the retraction.
The Poynter Report discussed the practice of news organizations prewriting stories, a topic brought to light by NPR's recent erroneous report about Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito's retirement. Poynter colleagues Kristen Hare and Fernanda Camarena explored the reasons for prewriting stories and the safeguards news organizations implement to prevent premature publication. They emphasized that while prewriting is common, ensuring the news has actually occurred is the most crucial final step.