WHAC has an interview with new CNN weekend anchor TJ Holmes…

Some tend to think that since you’re an anchor, that’s all you do … sit there and read the teleprompter for hours. What does the job of a CNN anchor entail?

I know people think of anchors as “reading the prompter”, but at CNN, a lot of our time on the news set is spent not reading, but ad-libbing. A lot of a CNN newscast is unscripted because breaking news happens or interviews are added, etc. Every CNN anchor also reports. We go out in the field. Of course, it’s not on a daily basis, like the field correspondents, but anchors do plenty of reporting.

Also, there are so many challenges and demands on CNN anchors that take you outside of the newsroom. We have responsibilities to the community.

Community groups and organizations often call on us to lend a hand in some way. We often serve as guest speakers, panelist or emcee events.

Many anchors serve on community boards as well.