Melissa Macaya is Director of International News Reporting at CNN, where she leads the network’s multi-platform coverage and newsgathering of global stories during US daytime hours. Based in CNN’s Washington bureau, Macaya oversees a team of reporters and editors who produce coverage of the Americas and the world alongside CNN’s 24/7 global newsroom. Macaya also plays a key part in shaping CNN’s daily coverage strategy, particularly storytelling of ​Latin America and the US Latino community, coordinating newsroom resources and ensuring CNN’s multi-platform content reflects the voices and perspectives of the audiences it serves.

Prior to this role, she was a senior editor and assistant managing editor with CNN’s Live News Team, where she was responsible for leading multi-platform breaking news and live story coverage of major events both domestically and globally. She helped direct CNN’s digital live coverage of US elections and political breaking news of Washington. She led live coverage of the White House, Congress, 2020 and 2024 presidential elections, Trump trials, Supreme Court and other DC agencies. She won a News and Documentary Emmy for her breaking news coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Before joining CNN, Macaya helped lead live video and breaking news coverage at The Washington Post and worked in NBC News’ Washington bureau. She has a master’s degree in journalism from Georgetown University and is an adjunct professor in the program. She serves as Region 3 Director of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ), an organization that aims to increase the representation and influence of Hispanics in the news industry.

Macaya is fluent in Spanish and is passionate about amplifying stories about the US Hispanic community and Latin American region.