Brian Stelter Guest Throws Down the Gauntlet: If Chris Cuomo Doesn’t Talk About His Brother Monday Night, It Becomes a ‘Bigger Story’ for CNN

The Daily Beast editor at large Lachlan Cartwright told CNN’s Brian Stelter that Chris Cuomo must address his brother’s scandals now that he is about to return from his vacation.

On Sunday’s Reliable Sources, Stelter spent much of the show tracking the chaos unfolding in Afghanistan, though he eventually switched gears to discuss New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s continued attempt to defend himself. This comes as Cuomo is about to leave office after a report from the New York Attorney General’s Office concluded he sexually harassed 11 women.

So far, Chris Cuomo has said nothing on air about his brother’s alleged wrongdoings, and he has been on vacation for the past week. When Stelter spoke to Cartwright about Cuomo’s Monday night return to TV, he asked if the CNN anchor should talk about the governor’s troubles.

Cartwright made it emphatically clear as he answered that “he absolutely has to.”

The show is called Cuomo Prime Time. It’s on in prime time. It’s a key time slot, 9 PM. It’s not like he’s on at 3 AM. The viewers expect him to talk about it. He’s been off the air, before that, he was radio silent about this issue, and it’s the biggest political scandal of the year. If he doesn’t go on air tomorrow night and talk about it, it becomes a bigger story not just for him, but for CNN.

Cartwright’s answer is notable in light of how CNN has dealt with the media scandal that resulted from Cuomo’s entanglement with his brother’s alleged misconduct. Stelter in particular has drawn a great deal of public scrutiny for his attempts to defend Chris Cuomo throughout this saga.

Watch above, via CNN.

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