Topnotch CNN Investigative Journalist Drew Griffin Dies At 60

Drew Griffin, CNN’s award-winning Senior Investigative Correspondent, known for getting even the cagiest of interview subjects to engage in a story, died Saturday after a long battle with cancer, his family said. He was 60, Matt Lait and Samira Jafari reported for CNN.

Photo Insert: Drew Griffin speaking at the 74th Peabody Awards

A gifted storyteller, Griffin had a well-earned reputation for holding powerful people and institutions accountable.

“Drew’s death is a devastating loss to CNN and our entire profession,” CNN CEO Chris Licht said in a note to staff. “A highly acclaimed investigative journalist, Drew’s work had incredible impact and embodied the mission of this organization in every way.”

Griffin worked on hundreds of stories and multiple documentaries over the course of nearly two decades on CNN’s investigative team. His reporting had been honored with some of journalism’s most prestigious awards – Emmys, Peabodys, and Murrows among them. “But people mattered more to Drew than prizes,” Licht said.

Griffin had an incredibly strong work ethic, colleagues said. He kept his illness private from most of his co-workers and had been reporting up until the day he passed. Michael Bass, CNN’s Executive Vice President of Programming, also shared his admiration for Griffin in a note to the investigative team Sunday.

“Fearless and artful at the same time, he knew how to push a story forward to its limits, but also tell it in a way that would make everyone understand,” Bass said.

“How many times has he chased an unwilling interviewee? How many times has he spoken truth to power? How many times has he made a difference on something important … It was an honor to be his colleague and to be witness to his work and the ways it changed the world.”

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