CNN has apologized after it mistakenly aired a photo of a Dolly Parton impersonator during a segment about the country icon’s death.
Around 11 hours after Parton’s death at 80 was announced by her family, the cable network displayed a photo of Kelly Vohnn, a Las Vegas-based tribute artist, instead of the singer herself, during Laura Coates Live.
“We regret the error and apologize to the Parton family,” CNN told The New York Post, which first reported the mix-up, in a brief Thursday statement.
In an interview with the Post, 58-year-old Vohnn said the photo CNN used of her was taken in December on the red carpet for a Las Vegas screening of the musical Song Sung Blue, starring Kate Hudson and Hugh Jackman.
“I started getting all these texts in from friends saying that I was on CNN, and I couldn’t believe it,” she told the publication.
“I was already heartbroken at losing Dolly because of how much she has given to me as a woman and an artist. But then to see these images of me on screen was just weird.”
“Somebody at CNN really messed up and didn’t do their research,” Vohnn, who has portrayed Parton throughout her career, added.
“I felt so sorry and apologetic for Dolly, because over her career there are so many wonderful images and moments that they could have chosen from — and CNN just picked something not appropriate.”
The Independent has contacted CNN and Parton’s representatives for additional comment.
The photo of Vohnn appeared among a montage of images of the real Dolly Parton while Coates spoke to CNN correspondent Shimon Prokupecz, who was reporting live from Nashville.
The “9 to 5” singer died Tuesday following a “brief battle with cancer,” her team said.
Her family have said she will have a small private funeral with no confirmed plans for a public memorial.
Parton was believed to be the world’s wealthiest country music star, with an estimated net worth of $500 million, and was a noted philanthropist.
She was known for her efforts to encourage literacy around the world through her Dollywood Foundation’s Imagination Library and for funding the American Red Cross and the development of a Covid vaccine.
She wrote more than 3,000 songs, and a record-breaking 44 of her albums reached the top 10 on the country music charts. She won 11 Grammy Awards, three Emmy Awards and received an honorary Oscar for her humanitarian work at the 2025 Governors Awards.
Her health concerns first became public in September 2025, when she was forced to postpone her Las Vegas residency.
Parton was then forced to miss several planned public appearances, including one at Dollywood just days before her death.
Tributes for the singer have come from far and wide, with messages from everyone ranging from Paul McCartney and Beyoncé to her goddaughter, Miley Cyrus, and Fast & Furious actor Vin Diesel, who shared an emotive rendition of Parton’s hit “I Will Always Love You”.
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