Chris Cuomo Fired at CNN: ‘This Is Not How I Want My Time to End’
UPDATE (12/4/2021 8:08 pm ET):
Three days after CNN suspended Chris Cuomo over information that indicated he’d helped his brother, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, battle sexual harassment charges, the network has officially cut ties with the news personality.
CNN announced the news of Cuomo’s firing in a statement on Saturday, which reads: “Chris Cuomo was suspended earlier this week pending further evaluation of new information that came to light about his involvement with his brother’s defense. We retained a respected law firm to conduct the review, and have terminated him, effective immediately. While in the process of that review, additional information has come to light. Despite the termination, we will investigate as appropriate.”
In response to the news network, Cuomo released a statement on Twitter, saying, “This is not how I want my time at CNN to end but I have already told you why and how I helped my brother. So let me now say as disappointing as this is, I could not be more proud of the team at Cuomo Prime Time and the work we did as CNN’s #1 show in the most competitive time slot. I owe them all and will miss that group of special people who did really important work.”
— Christopher C. Cuomo (@ChrisCuomo) December 4, 2021
Original Story (12/1/2021 9:01 am ET):
CNN has suspended Chris Cuomo indefinitely after new information came to light revealing how he helped his brother, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, while he was facing sexual harassment charges.
The decision came after the New York attorney general released new documents, which CNN said show “a greater level of involvement in his brother’s efforts than we previously knew.” Chris Cuomo previously acknowledged offering advice to his brother, with CNN accepting his apology; however, the latest information reveals far more details on the news host’s involvement.
“When Chris admitted to us that he had offered advice to his brother’s staff, he broke our rules and we acknowledged that publicly,” CNN said in a statement. “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 continued. “As a result, we have suspended Chris indefinitely, pending further evaluation.”
The documents include numerous emails and text messages from Chris Cuomo that show how deeply he was involved in his brother’s scandal. “Please let me help with the prep,” read one text to a senior aide. He also pledged to use his own media sources to stay ahead of other forthcoming allegations. Andrew Cuomo resigned in August following the allegations that he harassed staff.
Chris Cuomo joined CNN in 2013 as co-host of the network’s morning show. In 2018, he officially debuted his own show in the 9 PM slot; it would go on to become CNN’s top-rated primetime show.
In light of the recent suspension, Anderson Cooper‘s 360 show aired a second hour on Tuesday night in place of Chris Cuomo’s show. Cooper acknowledged the suspension on air but offered no further details on the network’s plans going forward.
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