Another former White House communications staffer is making the jump to television news.
Former White House comms director Kate Bedingfield is joining CNN as an on-air political commentator, the network announced today. Bedingfield joins CNN after serving for two years as White House Communications Director under President Joe Biden.
She vacated the role at the end of February and was replaced by Ben LaBolt.
Bedingfield previously served as deputy campaign manager and communications director on the Biden-Harris 2020 campaign, where she helped launch President Biden’s campaign in the spring of 2019 and then helped him successfully navigate the Democratic primary and go on to defeat President Donald Trump.
Bedingfield also served as Biden’s Communications Director when he was vice president and as director of response and associate communications director in the Obama White House. She has previously served as the communications director on Senator Jeanne Shaheen’s 2008 Senate campaign and as a press secretary at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 2006.
White House communications staffers have a long history of transitioning into TV news. Many of them have been on-air contributors, and some have even gotten their solo-hosted or co-hosted shows. Bedingfield’s former Biden White House colleague Jen Psaki launched her own show this past spring which now airs Sundays on MSNBC. Symone Sanders, who worked directly with VP Kamala Harris, also has an MSNBC show airing at 4 p.m. ET on weekends, and former George W. Bush communications director Nicolle Wallace has her own MSNBC show airing weekdays at 4 p.m. Former Trump White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany co-hosts Outnumbered on Fox News, and Trump’s first White House press secretary Sean Spicer had a run hosting a show on Newsmax.
Then of course there are ABC’s George Stephanopoulos and Fox News’ Dana Perino being the two of the most prominent examples of White House communications staffers-turned-TV news stars working today.
Now, will Bedingfield eventually host (or co-host) a show of her own, similar to the others? Only time will tell.