She joined CNN in the spring of 2003, after working as a reporter and anchor in Boise, Idaho, and Phoenix, Arizona. While at KTVB in Idaho, she was honored by the Idaho Press Club for her stories about Julianne Prudhomme, a four-year old girl who underwent a five-organ transplant.
Paul was raised in Bellevue, Ohio and attended the University of Toledo, where she earned a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism. She got her start in broadcast journalism in Clarksburg, West Virginia, working as a news anchor, editor, photographer, and reporter at WDTV.
She is a former Miss Mansfield (Ohio); Miss Greater Cleveland, 1991–92; and third runner up to Miss Ohio, 1993.
Christi Paul is married with two children. She is also a noted singer, having performed the National Anthem before the Atlanta Braves vs. Florida Marlins game on Wednesday, June 6, 2007.