CNN Christi Paul’s Biography – Husband, Net Worth, Height

Christi Paul is an American journalist and author, who rose to prominence for being the news anchor at HLN Network during weekdays, and at CNN

Daniel Wanburg

Christi Paul

Christi Paul is an American journalist and author, who rose to prominence for being the news anchor at HLN Network during weekdays, and at CNN Network on the weekend.

Early Life and Family

Christi Ruth Paul was born on 1 January 1969, in Bellevue, Ohio, USA to parents Roger and Ann Paul. She and her brother, Danny Paul, were raised in Bellevue and stayed in Ohio until they finished college. Her second name came from her paternal and maternal grandmothers, both named Ruth. Little else is known about her growing up years, except that she entered and won beauty pageants, including “Miss Mansfield,” “Miss Greater Cleveland” in 1991-92, and third place in the “Miss Ohio” competition in 1993.

Education

After she matriculated from a local high school in Bellevue in 1987, she went on to graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Communication from the University of Toledo in 1993; she had her internship on Entertainment Tonight with CBS. Christi was recognized as an “Outstanding Alumna” and was awarded an honorary doctorate degree when she delivered a commencement address to the 2014-2015 graduates at the University of Toledo.

Career

After college and internship, she wasn’t able to get into broadcasting immediately. She went around doing odd jobs in Cleveland, such as assisting magicians in shows, presenting auto shows, and even singing at sports events.

First Steps

It was only when she was offered a job as a news presenter, reporter, and photographer at WDTV, a CBS-affiliated TV station in Clarksburg, West Virginia, that she was able to use her college degree. Her steady work in the field of broadcast journalism had her earning about $12,000 a year.

Later on, Christi moved to Boise, Idaho to accompany her first husband, and worked as a news correspondent for KTVB. When her marriage fell apart, she accepted a job at KNXV in Phoenix, Arizona, and then transferred to KTVK, a Phoenix CNN-affiliated TV station, where she became a news anchor, consumer correspondent, and weather girl.

Christi Paul

Further Success

In 2003, she joined HLN (then CNN Headline News), a CNN owned cable news channel, the main focus of which was to deliver straight news all day long, but later on was relaunched with a new programming concept adding morning shows and true crime shows. In 2013, she joined CNN network as a news correspondent and anchor, while still working with HLN.

Reporting tragic events such as missing children pushed her to create the TV show, “Find Our Children,” in 2010, to spread awareness about these children and seek help from viewers in looking for them. It started as a segment on CNN’s online site, then it aired in two networks such as HLN and TruTV for twice a week.

They were able to locate quite a number of missing children through the help of the show.

Christi became a popular news anchor by covering important national news events, including several presidential elections and the Barack Obama’s historic inauguration in Washington D.C. She was granted an exclusive interview with Vice President Joe Biden in 2013, in which domestic violence and Obamacare were discussed. She comprehensively presented the news about terrible tragedies such as the $70 billion devastation by Hurricane Sandy, the deadliest hurricane in 2012, and the most violent mass shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut in 2012, the Orlando Pulse nightclub in 2016, and the Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 2020.

Today, she is still presenting news for HLN as one of the network’s weekday news anchors, and CNN’s “New Day” TV show weekend edition news anchor.

Personal Life

Christi married her second husband Peter Wurm, a chemical engineer, on 21 June 2002 at a beach resort in Kauai, Hawaii. She met him a year after she filed for divorce from her previous, abusive husband.  She always believed in second chances in love, and now she has been married for 18 years with three daughters. If her Instagram posts are to be believed, then her relationship is going strong and she has a happy family.  She has constantly posted about her infinite luck of having Peter for a husband.

Previous Relationship

When she was still starting her career in broadcast journalism, she met Rob Koebel, another news reporter, and dated him for a while. When Rob was accepted for a job in Boise in 1996, he decided that he couldn’t leave Christi in West Virginia, and so he asked her to marry him. That time, she was also offered her dream job in Cleveland, but she chose him. During the planning of their wedding, she had seen him lose his temper, but for which he would apologize profusely.

After their wedding, his temper escalated and the abuse started. A couple of years into the marriage, she was ready to call it quits, but his parents intervened and they underwent marriage counseling.

Posted by Christi Paul on Friday, December 20, 2019

It was fine for a year but the abuse started again. After four years, she decided to leave him for good, and was advised to inform him only when she was already far away, as it is usually the most dangerous time in an abusive situation. In October of 2000, when she was back in Ohio with her parents, she filed for a divorce.

Charity/Advocacy

One Love Foundation

Christi is a member of the National Advisory Council for One Love Foundation. It was established in honor of University of Virginia lacrosse player Yeardley Love, who was beaten to death in her apartment by her boyfriend, also a UV men’s lacrosse player in 2010.

The foundation spread awareness about abuse and provides support to the victims.

Girl Talk Inc.

She is an advocate of Girl Talk Inc., a peer-to-peer mentoring organization, in which high school girls would assist and educate middle school girls on how to tackle bullying in school, and develop self-confidence.

Children’s Healthcare

Volunteering as a Baby Buddy is a weekly thing for Christi, if she can find some time from her busy schedule. She cuddles baby and support families where their babies are confined at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), in the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

Interesting Facts

  1. She received the illustrious Hope Award from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in 2012, for her relentless support in spreading awareness of missing children through her “Find Our Children” TV program.
  2. In 2012, she wrote a book, “Love Isn’t Supposed to Hurt,” in which she shared the emotional and verbal abuse she experienced from her former husband. She never mentioned his name and referred to him as Justin in the book. It was immediately included in Amazon’s Top 20 books when it was published.
  3. Her former husband was arrested for urinating in front of an Apple Store; Rob was so drunk that he even resisted arrest. Later on, he said that it was triggered by the release of his ex-wife’s book, as although his name wasn’t mentioned, all their colleagues knew who it was.
  4. Christi recorded two songs entitled, “Wake Up In It” and “Free,” which can be downloaded from iTunes. Both songs were related to her abuse ordeal, and were released to accompany her book.
  5. Singing has always been an outlet for Christi. She’s sung national anthems in sport events including the Cleveland Cavaliers games, and has shared the stage with other popular singers including David Foster and Richard Marx.

Appearance

She is 5ft 3ins (1.60m) tall and weighs around 120lbs (54kgs). She is Caucasian with blonde hair and blue eyes.

Net Worth

Authoritative sources estimate Christi’s net worth at about $1.5 million as of June 2020, mostly from her salaries as a news correspondent for several years and her current job as TV news anchor at HLN and CNN shows. She is earning around $90,000 on average in a year.

Daniel Wanburg

As the Managing Editor at The Legit, I direct a dynamic team dedicated to creating rich content that profiles the lives and accomplishments of influential figures. My commitment to detail and storytelling drives the production of biographies that truly engage our audience. I manage all aspects of the editorial process, from conducting thorough research to crafting vivid narratives, all while ensuring the accuracy and quality of our work. At The Legit, our goal is to offer our readers comprehensive profiles that provide deep insights into the realms of business, entertainment, and more. Through diligent research and engaging storytelling, we highlight the exceptional journeys and achievements of those who both inspire and intrigue us.

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