CNN's Anderson Cooper rips Donald Trump Jr. for spreading 'idiotic' conspiracy theory about him
On his show Monday night, CNN's Anderson Cooper told viewers that while he typically ignores conspiracy theorists, he wasn't going to let an "idiotic" tweet making the rounds go without explanation.
On Sunday, Donald Trump Jr. tweeted a photo of Cooper in waist-deep floodwaters, with the caption: "It's a shame that CNN's ratings are down 41 percent. What's worse is there's a simple solution that they refuse to accept. Stop Lying to try to make @realDonaldTrump look bad." Other Twitter users circulated the photo, falsely claiming it showed Cooper on his knees to make it look like the water was deeper. This was dumb for a variety of reasons, including that the photo was from September 2008, when Cooper was covering Hurricane Ike in Texas.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
As if that wasn't enough evidence, Cooper noted that a member of his crew included in the photo, veteran CNN audio tech Doug Thomas, died a year ago this month. "We miss him every day," Cooper said. Watch the video below. Catherine Garcia
-
5 cinematic cartoons about Bezos betting big on 'Melania'Cartoons Artists take on a girlboss, a fetching newspaper, and more
-
The fall of the generals: China’s military purgeIn the Spotlight Xi Jinping’s extraordinary removal of senior general proves that no-one is safe from anti-corruption drive that has investigated millions
-
Why the Gorton and Denton by-election is a ‘Frankenstein’s monster’Talking Point Reform and the Greens have the Labour seat in their sights, but the constituency’s complex demographics make messaging tricky
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
