The Real Reason Chris Cuomo Could Be Fired From CNN
Chris Cuomo might be the next Cuomo to be in serious trouble. You might remember that his brother, Andrew Cuomo, the former long-serving governor of New York resigned earlier this year amid a slew of sexual harassment accusations. A former aid told The New York Times that the governor routinely asked about her sex life and whether or not she had ever had a sexual relationship with an older man. "I understood that the governor wanted to sleep with me, and felt horribly uncomfortable and scared," Charlotte Bennett told the publication.
Cuomo denied any wrongdoing, but that didn't stop ten other women from coming forward with similar claims. Cuomo maintained his innocence but resigned nonetheless. Further downstate, in New York City, Cuomo's brother Chris was reporting on the scandal for CNN. At the time, he simply stated that he had no knowledge of any wrongdoing and would not get involved in the situation, because you know, journalistic integrity, per Daily Mail.
For a while, it looked like Chris had avoided the kind of career-ending scandal that befell his brother. However, new testimony that was made public on Monday cast a nasty light on Chris. The sexual harassment scandal, which ended Andrew's career, may turn out to be the death knell for his brother, Chris too.
Chris Cuomo could lose his job
A series of documents released yesterday show that Chris Cuomo was much more involved with his brother, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's sexual harassment scandal than he had previously let on. In the past, Chris had sworn under oath that he had only been in "irregular" contact with his brother's aides. Dozens of newly released text messages, however, tell a different story.
Andrew reportedly relied heavily on Chris to pull strings and use his journalistic power to manipulate the press, part of which included providing info on which journalists were working on stories about the scandal per, The New York Times. Text messages also show Chris reaching out about "leads," providing dirt on Andrew's accusers. He even drafted public statements for his brother — basically the opposite of staying out of it.
Chris was especially concerned that Ronan Farrow would collect information even more detrimental to his brother's career. "When Ronan Farrow writes something, people in the media are going to talk about it," he told investigators when they asked about a series of texts discussing what Farrow may or may not know. This all goes against his reported agreement with CNN to avoid involving himself with his brother's problems or career, per the Daily Mail. As for Chris' future at CNN, it doesn't look good. According to a spokesperson for the network, "We will be having conversations and seeking additional clarity about their significance as they relate to CNN over the next several days."