Melissa Mahtani, an experienced journalist and award-winning producer, has been named executive producer of CBS News Confirmed. She will begin on April 22 and report to Claudia Milne, senior vice president and head of standards and practices for CBS News and Stations.
Mahtani will focus on developing the television, digital and social media presentation of the work of the CBS News Confirmed unit, a newly launched initiative to identify, combat and inform viewers of misinformation.
“Melissa’s depth and breadth of experience across multiple media platforms makes her the perfect person to lead the audience-facing presentation of the work of CBS News Confirmed,” Milne said. “She knows how to produce stories and shows, tell stories and package information to reach the largest audiences on whatever platforms they’re watching or reading. She will be a huge asset to our team.”
Mahtani brings to CBS News and Stations nearly two decades of experience, including international reporting, producing content for multiple platforms and innovating storytelling. She most recently served as a senior producer and reporter for CNN since 2017.
“CBS News Confirmed is the right initiative at the right time,” Mahtani said. “We are witnessing an onslaught of misinformation that makes it harder for people to distinguish between what is real and what is not. CBS News Confirmed will empower our viewers to be able to tell fact from fiction, sharing our own process of verification every step of the way.”
CBS News Confirmed brings together a team of highly skilled journalists who use data and technology to verify and fact-check questionable videos and reports and explain CBS News’ verification process. CBS News Confirmed represents an investment in several key areas: hiring forensic journalists, new training, state-of-the-art technology and other tools, all focused on ensuring that CBS News combats misinformation and ensures the accuracy of its reporting.
The unit will also produce multiplatform programming, including signature segments airing throughout the run-up to the 2024 election and a signature stream program to launch this summer.
Mahtani joins CBS News and Stations from CNN, where has been a senior producer and reporter for CNN’s digital team. In that role, reported for CNN’s gender-focused “As Equals” team; was a senior producer for the live news team, writing blogs and covering some of the biggest global events; and created and launched the “Inside CNN” newsletter, which was sent to more than 850,000 users.
Additionally, was a senior producer on CNN’s Facebook Watch show “Go There” and a senior producer on Sanjay Gupta’s “Coronavirus: Fact vs. Fiction” podcast in reaction to the need for facts around the outbreak, which earned the 2020 Best Podcast Eppy Award.
Earlier at CNN, was a producer on “Fareed Zakaria GPS,” “Reliable Sources,” “Erin Burnett Out Front” and “The World Right Now with Hala Gorani.”
During her career, Mahtani has lived and worked in Zambia, the U.K., France, Spain, Italy and the United States. She has also interviewed a wide range of newsmakers, including Afghanistan’s youngest mayor, Zarifa Ghafari, and the first lady of Namibia, as well as celebrities like Naomi Campbell, Kristin Davis, Adwoa Aboah and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Before CNN, Mahtani was a news producer at France 24 and earlier at ITN. She began her career in 2007 at CNBC.
Mahtani earned a Bachelor of Arts from King’s College London and a postgraduate diploma from the London School of Journalism.