Jim Sciutto Returning to TV News, Joining CNN

By Alissa Krinsky 

Jim Scuitto the former ABC News foreign correspondent who left the news business less than two years ago, is joining CNN, TVNewser has learned. An announcement on his role is to be announced later today from CNN’s Washington Bureau.

Sciutto departed ABC News in 2011 after 13 years with the network, spent mostly in international hotspots. He left the business altogether moving to Beijing where he was Chief of Staff to U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke. Walking away from news “will be really difficult, even for a couple of years,” Sciutto told TVNewser in January 2012. “I love the business. It’s the only job I’ve done for nearly 20 years. I still consider it a mission.”

Sciutto has reported from Iraq, Afghanistan and Russia and defied government restrictions to report from Myanmar, Zimbabwe and Iran. In 2008 Sciutto wrote about the perception of America in the Middle East in his book “Against Us.”

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Confirmed: Sciutto will be CNN’s Chief National Security Correspondent. Press release after the jump…

Jim Sciutto Joins CNN as Chief National Security Correspondent

Jim Sciutto has been named CNN’s chief national security correspondent, effective immediately. Further bolstering CNN’s newsgathering capabilities from the nation’s capital, Sciutto will report and provide analysis on all aspects of U.S. national security, including foreign policy, the military, terrorism, and the intelligence community. He will appear across the network’s programs and platforms. The announcement was made today by Sam Feist, Washington bureau chief and senior vice president.

“Jim’s vast experience reporting firsthand from around the globe will provide viewers with rich perspective on important stories domestically and abroad,” said Feist. “I am delighted to welcome him to our team.”

Sciutto was ABC News’ senior foreign correspondent, based in primarily in London and later, from Washington. In that role, he traveled to and reported from more than 50 countries in Europe, Asia, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East. His extensive reporting included dozens of assignments from inside Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran. He is the author of a book based on his own experiences in the Middle East, “Against Us: The New Face of America’s Enemies in the Muslim World.”

Sciutto’s work in Iran during the 2009 election protests earned him an Edward R. Murrow award. He was also given the George Polk Award and a citation for Excellence from the Overseas Press Club for his undercover reporting from Myanmar, where he bucked government restrictions to tell the stories of that country’s repressive regime. His reporting for the series “Iraq: Where Things Stand” was recognized with an Emmy Award for two consecutive years.

Most recently, Sciutto served as chief of staff and senior advisor to the U.S. Ambassador to China, Gary Locke. Prior to ABC News, he served as the Hong Kong-based correspondent for Asia Business News. Sciutto began his career as the moderator and producer of a weekly public affairs talk show on PBS. He graduated from Yale University with a bachelor’s degree in Chinese history.

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