People are full of great advice... Professors, parents, friends mean well... But in the end, the person driving this thing called life is you. Listen to you. Spend time being alone. Learn your worth. Dream. And never forget where you came from.
Brooke Baldwin
I'm fortunate enough to get hair and makeup every day because of what I do, but it's the same, consistent look. Great for TV, not so fun for a wedding!
One of my early heroes was Sally Ride, the first American woman in space.
Wedding dress shopping is basically like dating. You pick the one based on how you feel.
It's a funny thing when you finally have an excuse to get all of your favorite people from all corners of the globe together in one room for my wedding. Other than saying 'I do' to my hunky Englishman, that is the thing I am most excited about!
I really focus on giving the viewers compelling television, and hope that more and more people watch.
At age 12, it was obvious. I had to go to Space Camp.
CNN was just a glimmer in my eye when I was growing up in Atlanta.
My 'something borrowed' was a stunning pair of vintage diamond drop earrings from my friend Afshin at Estate Diamond Jewelry in N.Y.C. My 'something blue' was my tanzanite right hand ring that I bought for myself in Tanzania after climbing Mt Kilimanjaro.
Having covered the crazy campaign of 2016 and seeing a lot of young women showing up, I just had this ah-ha moment. I went to my bosses and said, 'Guys, I want to make women my priority.'
In the most polarized and passionate, the most angry and aggressive news environment in recent memory, my job as a journalist requires me - often - to push back in live interviews against comments that are unfair, untrue, or leave me thinking, 'Is this seriously happening right now?'
Just because someone says something, whether it's at the podium during the briefing or the president tweets, I can't always assume that's factual. That's insane. We have to be very quick on our toes in fact checking.
I dedicated my first 'American Woman' series to my mother. She and millions in her generation felt they couldn't use their voices, but they taught their daughters they must use theirs.
I run into viewers all the time who have no idea I've moved to N.Y.C. I think, for many of them, a studio is a studio is a studio.
Throughout the 2016 presidential election, I listened. At debates and rallies, I heard their voices clearly and felt compelled to do something more. Thousands and thousands of women spoke with confidence and conviction.
My 2016 was basically spent covering Donald Trump and falling madly in love with James Fletcher.
As for being an objective journalist? That's easy. I want what everyone else wants: the truth.
It has always been important for women to empower other women.
I always believe with a great day, you also have a not-great day.
I had to put in my time all through my 20s. Then I came to CNN in 2008 as a freelancer with no guarantees.
I want to help lift women's voices. And I realize, in doing that, I need to use my own.
Each weekday morning, I'm up - reading, reading, reading.
As for my mom, her biggest gift to me was teaching me I can and I must use my voice. I owe her a debt of gratitude.
It's so important to talk to the first responders.
What's been fascinating about shooting my series 'American Woman' is the ubiquity of a woman's experience - and no matter who you are: a rockstar, film director, mom - we all are celebrating this movement of female empowerment, but we also realize we have a long way to go.
I've covered tornadoes and other natural disasters. I wasn't on the ground for Katrina. But as our helicopter descended toward Mexico Beach, I just saw an entire town gone. Leveled, with the exception of a condo still standing here and there.
This millennial generation... you guys seem so entitled.
When President Ashraf Ghani gave his 2014 inaugural speech at the presidential palace, he choked up thanking his wife for her support and announced that she would take on a public role. That a male leader in Afghanistan would thank his spouse - let alone go on to promote her work and appear with her publicly - made news around the world.
With hard work and some good help, I eventually landed an exclusive interview with Auma Obama, President Obama's half-sister.
Whether it's summiting Kili or achieving my next work goal - Look forward for a moment, but then keep your head down and trudge on.
Home, for me, is not just a place but a feeling.
I know we journalists have a reputation for being cynics. We do. It's our job to question - everything.
I'd been invited to deliver the commencement address to the Class of 2017 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Speaking live on television is one thing... speaking to 30,000 people in a football stadium is another.
I grew up knowing my grandfather had served our country for decades in the Navy, buried in his whites in Arlington; I have family members who are veterans.
All I know is what I do each and every day and what we do here at CNN, which is all about the facts, asking tough questions, challenging leaders and our own leadership in this country.
I'm the biggest ice cream eater you've ever met!
There are often days when I've sat down in my office for hours and prepped for a show knowing, three minutes before I go on, some big crazy thing happens where everything is thrown out, and the teleprompter goes blank.
I've never used the word 'I' in a piece in my 18 years in journalism.
Seriously, how many places on this planet exist in which you get to say to your boss, 'Sorry, but I'm leaving to climb a mountain, and I won't have Wi-Fi or cell service for a week.'
You never ask a Maasai warrior how many cattle he has; it's like asking someone how much money they've got in their bank account.
Ava DuVernay, Sheryl Crow, Diane von Furstenberg, Ashley Graham, Tracy Reese, Pat Benatar, Issa Rae, Betty White - they've all shattered glass ceilings, whether in music, fashion, or film.
I'd definitely have some butterflies if the day ever came when I'd get to sit down with Oprah.
I invite a variety people on my show with wide-ranging opinions - sometimes even my jaw hits the floor, too - but I let them speak. Whether it's left, right, or center, I want to expose my viewers to other perspectives. Agree with them or not, the nation needs to listen.
It matters that we have balance and facts and push people when they need to be pushed so that we can give the accurate, fair, balanced piece to the viewer, and then it's up to the viewer to be the judge.
I love living in Manhattan, but every time I leave, I say that I'm so happy I'm leaving.
I'm reporting on a world at war.
When Senator Cruz, with all due respect, tries to throw my network and CNN under the bus, let me stand up for my colleagues and journalists here.
What surprised me the most? Christina Hagan, the millennial Congressional candidate and ardent Trump supporter. I walked into her living room in rural Ohio one summer weekend with an open mind, and I'm grateful she offered the same in return.
I tend to gravitate toward gender- and race-related stories.
I have no choice but to be 100-percent-focused. My two hours get blown up nearly every single day by breaking news.
