RizKhan.com / Biography

Riz Khan reported world news as a Senior News Anchor for CNN-International, based in Atlanta. He enjoyed hosting the flagship shows for the network, "Q&A with Riz Khan" and "Q&A-Asia with Riz Khan". These interactive shows put world newsmakers and celebrities up for viewer questions live by phone, e-mail, video-mail and fax, along with questions and comments taken from the real-time chatroom that opens half-an-hour before each show.

"Q&A with Riz Khan" launched on the 29th of July, 1996.
Guests included:

The Dalai Lama
U-N Secretary General, Kofi Annan
NATO Secretary General, Javier Solana
Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu
U-S First Lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton
South African President, Nelson Mandela
International cricket star, Imran Khan
World Chess Champion, Gary Kasparov
World Boxing Champion, Evander Holyfield
Spy thriller author, Tom Clancy
Poland's President, Alexsand Kwasniewski
Gold Medal Olympic runner, Michael Johnson
U-S Bosnia envoy, Richard Holbrooke
Former Israeli Prime Minster, Shimon Peres
British Tycoon, Richard Branson
Actor, Director, Kenneth Branagh
Author, Salman Rushdie
Paranormalist, Uri Geller
U-S Defense Secretary, William Cohen
Actor, Danny Glover
Actress, Sigourney Weaver
Singer, Sheryl Crow
Former Soviet President, Mikhail Gorbachev

Riz Khan is a key on-air figure in international breaking news. He has hosted major news events from the anchor desk and on location, such as the 1996 and 1999 coverage of elections in India, the 1997 historic election in Britain, and in April 1998 the unprecedented live coverage from the Muslim pilgrimage, the Hajj- the first such broadcast from any television network in the world. Khan also secured a number of leading interviews - including the world exclusive with Pakistan's General Pervez Musharraf, following his coup in October 1999.

Born in April 1962 in Aden, South Yemen, under British colonial rule, Khan moved with his family to London, England at the age of 4. Riz Khan attended the University of Wales, in Cardiff, Britain, where he graduated in a Batchelor of Science with Honours in Medical Physiology, before going on to do a Post-Graduate course in Radio Journalism in Portsmouth, England. In 1987, Khan was selected for the prestigious BBC News Trainee Scheme - a two year BBC training system usually taking only 6 people per course.

Riz progressed to jobs as a BBC Reporter, Producer, and Writer, working in both television and radio. Khan would later become one of the founding News Presenters on BBC World Service Television News. Riz joined CNN in May 1993. He speaks Hindi and Urdu, understands other Asian languages such as Punjabi and Kachi. He has studied French, and "toys" with other European languages, including Swedish. Khan's hobbies include playing the drums, martial arts, skiing, drawing and painting, and cooking and entertaining.