Valerie Hoff DeCarlo, a former CNN anchor who left the journalism industry after a controversy where she used the N-word in a private exchange, has passed away. She was 62. Hoff DeCarlo worked as an anchor for CNN from 1992 to 199, then moved on to NBC-affiliate WXIA in Atlanta from 1999 to 2017, the New York Post noted. She died after a battle with lung cancer. Ex-CNN anchor who quit journalism after using N-word dies at 62 https://t.co/q8wt6zzhzY pic.twitter.com/clLJdspvsD — New York Post (@nypost) December 3, 2025 More from the New York Post: While Hoff DeCarlo was chasing a potential story about racial and police violence in 2017, she referred to herself as a “news n—as” in a private message to a man who posted a video she was trying to investigate. The man, who was black, had previously noted in a public post that many “news n—as” were trying to get hold of the video, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. “If she is bold enough to say it to me, being an African American, then I’m pretty sure this isn’t the first time she has used that word,” the man told the outlet. Hoff DeCarlo tried to explain that she was referring to herself as a “n—a.” The man, though, requested her manager or lawyer’s contact, and the situation spiraled from there as he posted the private messages online. WXIA placed her on a two-week suspension before she ultimately resigned, the outlet reported. Since then, Hoff DeCarlo quietly tried to find her way back into the industry as a citizen reporter through her own blog, which has since been deleted. Hoff DeCarlo was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013 and recovered after having a double mastectomy. Her husband, Derrick DeCarlo, said the disease came back this year as stage-four lung cancer. She is survived by her husband and two sons, Nicholas and Jehnya. CNN star who was forced to resign after saying the N-word dies at age 62 https://t.co/11Ee3fBfSF — Daily Mail US (@Daily_MailUS) December 3, 2025 Daily Mail shared: But DeCarlo never lost her wit, one of her former CNN colleagues, Kathleen Kennedy, told the Journal-Constitution. ‘When she told me she had lung cancer, she was very matter-of-fact about getting her affairs in order. Then she said, “You know. Maybe I should just cash in my 401(k) and live it up!”‘ she recalled. After the Twitter controversy, DeCarlo went on to focus on a travel and food blog that she started back before her CNN days, while also becoming a successful day trader. ‘She never had a losing year,’ Derrick told the Journal-Constitution.