Maria Spinella Named Executive Producer of ‘CNN Tonight With Don Lemon’

CNN’s Don Lemon has a new top producer, after the previous showrunner left for MSNBC.

Maria Spinella, a CNN veteran who has worked on shows anchored by Piers Morgan, Campbell Brown and Paula Zahn, will become the new executive producer of “CNN Tonight,” the late prime block Lemon has hosted since 2014.

She replaces Jonathan Wald, who recently left CNN for a senior executive role at MSNBC.

Spinella was most recently senior broadcast producer for Lemon’s program, serving as the show’s primary editorial and control room manager for show. She also produced live convention post shows from both the Republican and Democratic national conventions last year.

Before that, she was senior producer for “Piers Morgan Live” and a segment producer for programs anchored by Brown and Zahn. Prior to joining CNN, Spinella was associate/field producer for the ABC News show “Primetime Medial Mysteries,” an associate/field producer for HBO Sports’ “Costas Now” and a broadcast associate for “60 Minutes II.”

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