Chris Cuomo, star news anchor for CNN, has been “indefinitely” suspended while the network evaluates his conduct over revelations uncovered from the investigation by the NY AG into his brother, former Mayor Andrew Cuomo.
Chris Cuomo indefinitely suspended by CNN
The New York Attorney General’s office discovered documents while probing former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is under investigation over sexual misconduct allegations, raise “serious questions,” AG Letitia James said in a statement.
According to the AG, the documents show Chris helped his brother Andrew defend himself against allegations of sexual misconduct, NBC reported.
How did Cuomo aid the governor?
The investigation turned up documents that seemed to indicate that Chris Cuomo was more involved in assisting his brother, Governor Andrew than he had previously disclosed.
Among the transcripts, released by the office of the NY AG, was an acknowledgment by Chris Cuomo that he had been asked to use his contacts as a CNN anchor to find out more about the allegations against his brother, the governor, the Blaze reported.
According to transcripts from his interview with investigators, Chris admitted he would reach out to media sources to discover new accusers who had not come forward publicly at the time.
“When asked, I would reach out to sources, other journalists, to see if they had heard of anybody else coming out,” Cuomo told investigators.
However, Fox reports that Chris Cuomo’s admission contradicts statements made to CNN viewers in August when he claimed: “I never made calls to the press about my brother’s situation.”
Fox reported:
“Three days after the New York Times broke the story about Anna Ruch, who alleged the governor sexually harassed her at a 2019 wedding reception, the CNN anchor texted top Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa, informing her: ‘I have a lead on the wedding girl.'”
Statement by CNN on suspension of Cuomo
The suspension comes after numerous people voiced significant criticism of Chris Cuomo, stating the anchor had violated widely accepted journalistic norms.
“The New York Attorney General’s office released transcripts and exhibits Monday that shed new light on Chris Cuomo’s involvement in his brother’s defense,” a spokesperson for CNN said in a statement. “The documents, which we were not privy to before their public release, raise serious questions.”
“When Chris admitted to us that he had offered advice to his brother’s staff, he broke our rules, and we acknowledged that publicly,” the statement continued. “But we also appreciated the unique position he was in and understood his need to put family first and job second.”
“However, these documents point to a greater level of involvement in his brother’s efforts than we previously knew,” the statement added. “As a result, we have suspended Chris indefinitely, pending further evaluation.”
