CNN won't discipline Chris Cuomo for strategy calls with brother's staff about sexual harassment scandal
CNN is acknowledging it was "inappropriate" for its anchor Chris Cuomo to advise his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), on how to handle his sexual harassment scandal.
The CNN host took part in a series of strategy calls earlier this year focused on how to respond after the New York governor faced allegations of sexual harassment, The Washington Post revealed on Thursday. These calls reportedly included the governor's top aide, communications team, lawyers, and advisers, and the CNN anchor urged his brother not to resign while citing "cancel culture," the Post says.
Chris Cuomo hosts a nightly show on CNN, and he said in March he could "obviously" not cover his brother's scandal on the air, though CNN would continue to do so. But Cuomo taking part in these advisory calls "cuts against the widely accepted norm in journalism that those reporting the news should not be involved in politics," the Post wrote, with Columbia Journalism School professor Nicholas Lemann saying, "If you are actively advising a politician in trouble while being an on-air host on a news network, that's not okay."
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.
CNN in a statement to the Post confirmed that Cuomo, who "often serves as a sounding board for his brother," participated in these calls and said doing so was "inappropriate" but that he won't be disciplined.
"It was inappropriate to engage in conversations that included members of the governor's staff, which Chris acknowledges," CNN said. "He will not participate in such conversations going forward."
CNN previously faced criticism for allowing Chris Cuomo to interview his brother numerous times on the air early on during the COVID-19 pandemic last year. The network has said it "made an exception to a rule that we have had in place since 2013 which prevents Chris from interviewing his brother" during this time but that this rule has since been reimposed.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
The app that checks if you are deadIn The Spotlight Viral app cashing in on number of people living alone in China
-
Three consequences from the Jenrick defectionThe Explainer Both Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage may claim victory, but Jenrick’s move has ‘all-but ended the chances of any deal to unite the British right’
-
Why is London’s property market slumping?Today's Big Question Some sellers have reported losses of hundreds of thousands of pounds
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
Maduro pleads not guilty in first US court hearingSpeed Read Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty to cocaine trafficking and narco-terrorism conspiracy
-
Iran’s government rocked by protestsSpeed Read The death toll from protests sparked by the collapse of Iran’s currency has reached at least 19
-
Israel approves new West Bank settlementsSpeed Read The ‘Israeli onslaught has all but vanquished a free Palestinian existence in the West Bank’
-
US offers Ukraine NATO-like security pact, with caveatsSpeed Read The Trump administration has offered Ukraine security guarantees similar to those it would receive from NATO
-
Hong Kong court convicts democracy advocate LaiSpeed Read Former Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai was convicted in a landmark national security trial
