Sara Sidner

EXCLUSIVE
  • Multiple Award-Winning National and International Investigative Journalist
  • Senior National Correspondent, CNN
  • Host, CNN+'s 'The Big Picture'
  • Recipient of Two Gracie Awards, an Edward R. Murrow Award, Among Others

Multiple award-winning national and international CNN senior correspondent Sara Sidner is renowned for exposing injustices and uncovering truth in the most extreme environments. In 2016, Sidner took on a beat which focused on social, racial, and political conflict across the U.S. and in 2020, she helped lead CNN’s coverage in Minneapolis, Minnesota after the police killing of George Floyd. She has shaped the national dialogue with her work covering the first known coronavirus outbreak, the Charlottesville White Nationalist Rally as well as the trial of the Neo-Nazi who killed anti-racism protestor Heather Heyer, and the protests in Ferguson, Missouri following the police murder of the unarmed Black teenager Michael Brown. Previously, Sidner worked for CNN as an international correspondent based in India, then Jerusalem, and later Abu Dhabi. She hosts The Big Picture for CNN+, an in-depth look at the most important and interesting story of the day. Sidner has received rave reviews as a keynote speaker and moderator from groups such as the Alliance of Women Philanthropists, NAACP, the 92nd Street Y, the Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism, and many others.

Sidner has received numerous honors including a regional Emmy, an Edward R. Murrow Award, and multiple Gracie Awards from the Women in Media Foundation. She has reported from over twenty countries around the world, from the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks to the fall of Tripoli. She was part of the team that won a Peabody Award for CNN’s coverage of the Arab Spring, and shared the Achievement of the Year Award from SKY Women in Film & Television in the U.K. for her work. As an insightful moderator, inspiring keynote speaker, and renowned investigative journalist, Sidner offers her compelling and candid perspective as a journalist, woman, and citizen on the most intense and important news stories of our time.

 



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Past Hosts Include:
  • Alliance of Women Philanthropists
  • March of the Living
  • Saint Vincent Day Home
  • NAACP
  • Women in the World
Keynote - I shouldn't be here | Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism [1:08:45] - Get Sharable Link
Talks & Conversations with Sara Sidner
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Around the World and Behind the Headlines with Sara Sidner

SARA SIDNER’s frontline experience knows no bounds. Having reported live from the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, in the midst of rebel fighters during the fall of Tripoli, throughout war-town Afghanistan and even stateside at epicenter of the Covid-19 outbreak in Seattle and the heart of protests in Fe ...

SARA SIDNER’s frontline experience knows no bounds. Having reported live from the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, in the midst of rebel fighters during the fall of Tripoli, throughout war-town Afghanistan and even stateside at epicenter of the Covid-19 outbreak in Seattle and the heart of protests in Ferguson and Minneapolis, Sara has been front and center at some of the most intense and important news stories of our time. In this talk, Sara offers a behind-the-scenes look not only at foreign affairs, reporting from over 20 countries around the world, but also the domestic movements that shape our national dialogue. With candid and compelling insight, Sara shares her personal experiences as a journalist, a woman, and oftentimes a citizen searching to expose injustices and uncover truth in the most extreme environments.

Fearlessness is a False Notion

People equate fearlessness with bravery. It is not true. Bravery is when fear grips you and you are able to push through it and conquer whatever task is at hand despite the fear. Fear is there for a reason to protect us from predators and danger. But it can also be crippling. Trying to conquer irrat ...

People equate fearlessness with bravery. It is not true. Bravery is when fear grips you and you are able to push through it and conquer whatever task is at hand despite the fear. Fear is there for a reason to protect us from predators and danger. But it can also be crippling. Trying to conquer irrational fear has been a lifelong battle in my life.

 

Your Quirks Are Your Superpowers

We often lament the things that make us different. We don’t fit it. We are not ‘normal’. We try to conform. I submit to you that what makes each of us different is our superpower. We need to learn how to use it and stop wasting time comparing ourselves to others.   ...

We often lament the things that make us different. We don’t fit it. We are not ‘normal’. We try to conform. I submit to you that what makes each of us different is our superpower. We need to learn how to use it and stop wasting time comparing ourselves to others.

 

Conflict and Its Resolution Begin Inside of You

We are constantly dealing with our own inner conflicts and those manifest in the outer world as well. The racial and ethnic divide is one of the most ingrained conflicts in American society. It has been part of the America fabric since the founding of our nation. But the solution actual begins insid ...

We are constantly dealing with our own inner conflicts and those manifest in the outer world as well. The racial and ethnic divide is one of the most ingrained conflicts in American society. It has been part of the America fabric since the founding of our nation. But the solution actual begins inside each and every person. Our personal biases and learned prejudices can create mayhem. Recognizing them is key to begin eradicating racism in all its forms.

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<p><strong>Sara Sidner leads the conversation on reproductive justice, asking hard-hitting questions</strong></p>

Sara Sidner leads the conversation on reproductive justice, asking hard-hitting questions

Multi-award-winning CNN senior correspondent SARA SIDNER can be relied on to ask the tough questions, helping audiences understand the full scope of any issue. Whether she’s covering anti-racism protests, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, or the Arab Spring – for which her team won a Peabody Award – Sidner is a staunch defender of truth in journalism, shaping national and international dialogue. When Sidner spoke with the Medical Director of Planned Parenthood Great Plains for her CNN+ show Big Picture, she dug in. Sidner, who is renowned for uncovering the truth in the most extreme environments, focused the conversation on how limiting reproductive care access impacts more rural areas, as well as how restrictive abortion laws disproportionately affect Black and brown women. When news broke of the leaked draft of the Supreme Court’s decision that could overturn Roe v. Wade, the multiple Grace Award-winner took to Twitter to reframe the conversation, sharing an article that revealed that the original Roe v. Wade decision was also leaked. An incomparable investigative journalist who is always considering the broader narrative, Sidner offers her candid and compelling perspective on the most important news stories of our time.

Watch Sara Sidner’s keynote at the Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism >>

<div>From more than 20 countries around the world and deep within domestic movements shaping our national dialogue, Sara Sidner offers a perspective of domestic and global events with passion, power, and compassion</div>

From more than 20 countries around the world and deep within domestic movements shaping our national dialogue, Sara Sidner offers a perspective of domestic and global events with passion, power, and compassion

SARA SIDNER is the dynamic CNN powerhouse who serves on the frontline covering news in some of the most complicated situations. From the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, in the midst of rebel fighters during the fall of Tripoli, throughout war-town Afghanistan and even stateside at the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in Seattle and the heart of protests in Ferguson and Minneapolis, Sara has been front and center at some of the most intense and important news stories of our time. 
 
In her talks, Sara offers a behind-the-scenes look not only at foreign affairs, reporting from more than 20 countries around the world, but also the domestic movements that shape our national dialogue. Whether she's moderating a powerful discussion, inspiring students to dream bigger at their commencement, or creating one of the most heartfelt moments of a movement, with candor, empathy, and grace, Sara brings forward deeply personal experiences as a journalist, a woman, of color, and connected to the fact that she is a citizen of the global to events everywhere. Groups everywhere love her for the passionate, powerful, and compassionate portrayal of communicates and cultures here at home and from around the world that helped shaped who she is. With a simple-clarity, people rave, “Sara...she's the real deal.”

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Biography

Sara Sidner is CNN's multiple award-winning national and international correspondent, now based in the network's Los Angeles bureau.

Sidner moved to Los Angeles in 2014, after being posted in Jerusalem, Abu Dhabi, and New Delhi, India.

In 2020 Sidner helped lead the network’s coverage in Minneapolis, Minnesota after the police killing of George Floyd. Sidner was front and center in the midst of tear gas, rubber bullets, and fires during protests against police brutality that erupted for weeks in Minneapolis and then spread across the country and the world. She was the first and only reporter to be a conduit between the Chief of Police and the Floyd Family who had not yet spoken since Floyd’s death. It all unfolded on live television.

Months prior Sidner lead the Network’s coverage in Seattle, Washington covering the first known major deadly coronavirus outbreak in the United States. There she managed to get an exclusive interview with some of the nurses and staff members of the Kirkland, Washington nursing home where the first known major deadly outbreak of COVID-19 occurred in the US. She also reported from two of the hospitals that were besieged by COVID-19 patients entering their COVID-19 units as doctors and nurses scrambled to save their lives.

In 2016 she took on a beat which focused on social, racial, and political conflict across the United States. During her work she was involved in extended coverage in the Charlottesville White Nationalist Rally that ended with the murder of anti-racism protestor Heather Heyer. She covered the trial of the Neo-Nazi who killed Heyer. She has also interviewed numerous victims of racism as well as members of the KKK, white nationalist, and Neo-Nazi at the center of a new resurgence of overt and violent racism in America.

In 2014 Sidner led the network's coverage in Ferguson, Missouri where protests continued for more than 100 days after an unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown, was shot and killed by a white police officer. She was there for weeks while a grand jury looked at evidence and ultimately decided not to indict the officer. Their decision sparked two nights of rioting in Ferguson after weeks of peaceful protests. But it also lead to nationwide protests and a national conversation about race and policing in America, as well as a state commission and Presidential task force on policing.

Sidner worked for CNN as an international correspondent beginning in 2008. She was based in India then Jerusalem and later Abu Dhabi. She has reported from a multitude of countries, including India, Israel, the Palestinian territories, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Libya, Egypt, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Taiwan and Malaysia, Chile, and Haiti.

In 2011 in the Middle East, Sidner was part of the team that won a Peabody award for CNN's coverage of the Arab Spring. Her work in Libya reporting in the midst of rebel fighters during the fall of Tripoli has been recognized all over the world. In 2011 Sidner shared the Achievement of the Year Award from SKY WFTV Women in Film & Television in the United Kingdom for her war coverage in Libya during the Arab Spring.

While in India, Sidner headed the coverage of South Asia from the New Delhi bureau. One of her first major international stories unfolded when terrorists attacked several places in Mumbai, including the famed Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel, on November 26, 2008. Sidner was live throughout the 2008 siege that lasted 60 hours and took more than 170 lives. Her stories from South Asia also included a documentary on the 25-year civil war in Sri Lanka, several stints reporting in war-torn Afghanistan, and live coverage of violent political eruptions in Thailand and Bangladesh. She also explored many stories about the social and economic developments in India, culminating in a series of stories for CNN International's award winning "Freedom Project." Sidner also traveled to Chile and Haiti to cover the aftermath of devastating earthquakes in those countries.

Sidner has collected two Asian Television Awards -- one for her 2011 report on the horrors faced by young Bangladeshis forced into begging and a second for the 2012 Freedom Project documentary 'Operation Hope', which chronicled the extraordinary journey, from suffering to recovery, of one of these children, a seven-year-old boy who was castrated and left for dead when he refused to beg.

In 2013, Sidner received two Alliance for Women in Media Gracie Awards; one for her coverage of India's unwanted girls where she explored the issue of female infanticide in India and a second for her breaking news coverage of the 2012 Gaza-Israel conflict from Gaza & Israel. In 2014, Sidner also reported from Malaysia on missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370, from Ukraine on the downed Malaysia Airlines flight 17, and from the Israeli border during the 2014 war between Israel and Gaza.

Prior to joining CNN, Sidner was an anchor and reporter at local television news stations in San Francisco, Dallas, Florida, and Missouri. She received multiple awards during this time, including a regional Emmy Award, an Edward R. Murrow Award, and several Telly Awards. In 2021, she won a Gracie Award from the Women in Media Foundation for her News Feature Series on CNN about race and unrest in America. 

Sidner played Volleyball for the University of Florida and received her telecommunications degree from the University of Florida. UF’s College of Journalism and Communication named her Alumni of Distinction in 2011.

Follow Sara on Twitter @sarasidnerCNN. Instagram: sarasidnerTV