Chris Cuomo Comes Under Criticism After New Report Says Brother ‘Continues to Confer’ With Him on Scandal
CNN’s Chris Cuomo has faced a lot of criticism for advising his scandal-plagued brother during formal strategy sessions.
He is on vacation this week, but a new report on the heat Andrew Cuomo’s facing includes this paragraph:
Cuomo, who is ensconced in the governor’s mansion in Albany and has not been coming to the office, is left with few advisers. Rich Azzopardi, his longtime spokesman, has said he plans to stay in his post. The governor also continues to confer with longtime adviser Charlie King, a lobbyist at the public strategy firm Mercury, as well as his brother, CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, according to people familiar with the situation.
That detail received a lot of attention and further criticism for the CNN host:
?https://t.co/y6obqyTLag pic.twitter.com/WmUY8tELv6
— Aaron Blake (@AaronBlake) August 9, 2021
This has got to be Chris Cuomo’s last day on the job come on https://t.co/zimJDtwhIF
— Jonathan M. Katz (@KatzOnEarth) August 9, 2021
chris cuomo’s gotta go https://t.co/CP2Qwi1GRi
— Marlow Stern (@MarlowNYC) August 9, 2021
This is unacceptable from an ethical perspective but it is also deeply unfair to all of his colleagues at CNN https://t.co/D5QN2HEGW9
— Emily ?️ Tamkin (@emilyctamkin) August 9, 2021
So yeah, this is a problem. @CNN https://t.co/mstDD4Uk6o
— Janice Dean (@JaniceDean) August 10, 2021
Utter madness. https://t.co/IxkXAYyhyJ
— Kate Aurthur (@KateAurthur) August 9, 2021
Cuomo, who hosted his brother for friendly interviews in 2020, told viewers after the first harassment allegations came out, “Obviously I cannot cover it because he is my brother.”
In May, news came out that the CNN host was involved in his brother’s strategy sessions. A statement CNN provided to Mediaite at the time said, “Chris has not been involved in CNN’s extensive coverage of the allegations against Governor Cuomo – on-air or behind the scenes. In part because, as he has said on his show, he could never be objective. But also because he often serves as a sounding board for his brother. However, it was inappropriate to engage in conversations that included members of the Governor’s staff, which Chris acknowledges. He will not participate in such conversations going forward.”
Cuomo responded on air saying, “Today there are stories out there about me offering my brother advice. Of course I do. This is no revelation. I have said it publicly and I certainly have never hidden it… My family means everything to me. And I am fiercely loyal to them. I am family first, job second.”
He acknowledged being on those formal strategy sessions was “a problem for CNN” and told viewers it wouldn’t happen again.
