How I wake up: Jim Sciutto
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Jim Sciutto is getting an extra hour of sleep these days. Leaving behind the morning slot, CNN’s chief national security correspondent begins co-anchoring “CNN News Central” today from 1pm to 4pm.
- In between Baltic sea excursions and anchor duties, the Washingtonian is writing his fourth book on the new Cold War with Russia and China.
We caught up with the newshound to see how he begins his mornings.
⏰ Wake-up time: 6:30am, via iPhone sleep schedule alarm. “It has a kind of nicer, more mellow kind of music tone that wakes you up, instead of a blaring alarm.”
😴 First thing he does: Wake up his 12- and 14-year-old sons.
☕️ Morning must-have: A latte with an extra shot of espresso from Compass Coffee.
🏃🏻♂️ First activity: A 4- or 5-mile run around an outdoor track.
🧠 Mental jog: “I used to do Wordle every morning, and now I’ve switched to Octordle.”
🗞️ Morning habit: A run-through CNN and the front pages of the Washington Post, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal.
- “If I have a little break, I gotta read the Mets recap,” the New York native says. “Because I’m a broken Mets fan for decades.”
🥣 Breakfast: Keto-ish. Sciutto recently swapped cereal for scrambled eggs. “I’m not claiming to be a devoted keto follower, but I’m more of the middle-aged-guy keto follower — reduce your carbs or I end up getting a little pudgy.”
- Hence the peanut butter on toast he also grabs. “If it was my choice, it would be Skippy or Jif” brand, but his wife, Lemonada Media podcast host Gloria Riviera, “has chosen healthier options.”
Commute: A drive from Spring Valley to CNN’s bureau in NoMa, flipping through CNN, NPR, and BBC World Service radio.
- “I’m prepping all the time basically,” he says about his work. “I never stop reporting.”
Check out more morning rituals:
- National Children’s Museum’s Crystal Bowyer
- Restauranteur Andy Shallal
- ESPN’s Michael Wilbon