CNN’s Pamela Brown Reports in “The Rise of Christian Nationalism” for The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper
NEW YORK, NY – (February 23, 2026) – The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, a six-time Emmy® Award-winning CNN Original, returns with “The Rise of Christian Nationalism” with CNN Anchor and Chief Investigative Correspondent Pamela Brown premiering Sunday, March 22 at 8pm ET/PT. The hour will stream on demand the next day for subscribers of CNN’s streaming offering.
In this hour, Brown examines the growing influence of Christian nationalism, an ideology rooted in the belief that the United States was founded as a Christian nation and that its laws and institutions should reflect Christian values. Through immersive reporting and on-the-ground access, the episode explores how a movement once largely confined to the margins of white evangelical culture has gained new visibility and political power.
“My reporting for this hour began early last year when I visited Moscow, Idaho to interview Pastor Douglas Wilson. The response to that report was overwhelming and highlighted the need to better understand this movement working to redefine America as a Christian nation in the home, in a marriage, in schools and in government,” said Brown. “We embedded with a community under Pastor Wilson’s umbrella and spoke to women who have left the church and are now sounding the alarm. No matter where you live or what you believe, what we learned is especially consequential at this moment.”
In “The Rise of Christian Nationalism,” Brown travels to faith-centered communities where Christian nationalist ideas shape daily life, education, and governance. She sits down with prominent religious leaders who have helped build networks of churches and schools designed to instill a strict, literal interpretation of the Bible. She also speaks with women who are former church members, sharing accounts of religious trauma, rigid gender roles, and in some cases, abuse within Christian nationalist communities.
The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper is a collection of unique and immersive single subject, one-hour episodes from CNN’s award-winning longform storytelling team showcasing character-driven stories, special interviews, and investigative deep dives featuring reporting from CNN’s anchors and correspondents. The series, which has been honored with two consecutive Emmy® Awards for Outstanding Recorded News Program, is executive produced by Susan Chun. Brown has previously reported for The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper on the claims against Johnson & Johnson’s now-discontinued talc baby powder, the indictment of President Donald Trump over his handling of classified documents, and President Joe Biden’s unexpected decision to end his reelection bid.
The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper will stream live for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN connected TV and mobile apps on Sunday, March 22. The hour will also be available on demand beginning Monday, March 23 to CNN’s streaming subscribers and pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN connected TV and mobile apps, and Cable Operator Platforms.
Past episodes of The Whole Story are available to stream on demand for CNN’s streaming subscribers and on HBO Max.
The Whole Story is also available as a CNN Podcasts showcast. Visit CNN.com/audio or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
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About CNN Originals
The CNN Originals group develops, produces and acquires original, long-form unscripted programming for CNN Worldwide. Amy Entelis, executive vice president of talent, CNN Originals and creative development, oversees the award-winning CNN Originals portfolio that includes the following premium content brands: CNN Original Series, CNN Films, CNN FlashDocs, and CNN Studios, an internal production studio which creates long-form programming for CNN’s global platforms. Since 2012, the team has overseen and executive produced more than 50 multi-part documentary series and 70 feature-length documentary films, earning more than 120 awards and 450 nominations for the cable network, including CNN Films’ first Academy Award® for Navalny. Acclaimed titles include the Peabody Award winning and 13-time Emmy® Award-winning Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown; five time Emmy® nominee, Apollo 11, directed by Todd Douglas Miller; Eva Longoria: Searching for Spain and Emmy® nominated Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico; the Emmy® Award-nominated “Decades Series”: The Sixties, The Seventies, The Eighties, The Nineties, The 2000s, and The 2010s, executive produced by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman; I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not directed by Emmy® winner Marina Zenovich; The Last Movie Stars, directed by Ethan Hawke about the lives and careers of actors and humanitarians Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman; Grammy® Award nominee Little Richard: I Am Everything, directed by Lisa Cortés; the Oscar®, BAFTA, PGA, and duPont-Columbia Award-winning, Navalny directed by Daniel Roher; The Many Lives of Martha Stewart; This is Life with Lisa Ling; Primetime Emmy® and duPont-Columbia Award-winning, RBG, directed by Betsy West and Julie Cohen; See It Loud: The History of Black Television, executive produced by LeBron James and Maverick Carter; Space Shuttle Columbia: The Final Flight in partnership with the BBC; the Producers Guild Award and three-time Emmy® Award-winning Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy; BAFTA nominee and Directors Guild Award winner, Three Identical Strangers, directed by Tim Wardle; and the five-time Emmy® Award-winning United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell; and the five-time Emmy® Award-winning The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper. CNN Originals can be seen on CNN, to stream via a CNN All Access subscription, on the CNN Original Hub on HBO Max and discovery+, on the CNN Originals FAST channel, and with a pay TV subscription via CNN.com, CNN apps and cable operator platforms.
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Press Contacts
The Whole Story Press Contact
Pamela Brown Press Contact