Chris Cuomo Firing: CNN Faces Scrutiny For Handling Of Host's Role In Andrew Cuomo Scandal

CNN is under scrutiny after firing host Chris Cuomo on Saturday after an internal review into his role in aiding his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is facing sexual harassment accusations.

After initially conceding that Chris Cuomo made mistakes, CNN President Jeff Zucker reportedly felt misled after the New York attorney general's office report highlighted Chris Cuomo's involvement. CNN reportedly was disappointed with Chris Cuomo’s initial characterization of the events and that he did not disclose the full extent of his help to Andrew Cuomo.

According to CNN, the revelations from New York Attorney General Letitia James' office "point to a greater level of involvement in his brother's efforts than we previously knew. As a result, we have suspended Chris indefinitely, pending further evaluation." Amid the suspension, CNN decided to fire Chris Cuomo.

Documents detailed how Chris Cuomo helped Andrew Cuomo by looking into the status of soon-to-be-released articles and advised him on the public statement he should make. While Chris Cuomo alleges the network knew the full extent of his actions, the network denies that claim.

A spokesperson for Chris Cuomo told The Wall Street Journal, "Mr. Cuomo has the highest level of admiration and respect for Mr. Zucker. They were widely known to be extremely close and in regular contact, including about the details of Mr. Cuomo’s support for his brother. There were no secrets about this, as other individuals besides Mr. Cuomo can attest."

CNN responded that "[Chris Cuomo] has made a number of accusations that are patently false . . . This reinforces why he was terminated for violating our standards and practices, as well as his lack of candor.”

Some have questioned CNN and Chris Cuomo's journalistic standards because of his close relationship with his brother and their interviews together, especially within the last year. The interviews were seemingly good for ratings and viewers may have appreciated the brothers' on-air relationship and banter.

But many in the media immediately raised red flags about the conflict of interest.

While Chris Cuomo did announce on air that he would not cover his brother's case for CNN, which was ongoing at the time, staffers reportedly felt Zucker and others were a little too lenient with him.

Media insiders have long noted the strong professional relationship shared between Zucker and Chris Cuomo. Days before Chris Cuomo's firing, Washington Post media critic Erik Wemple noted that Zucker also bore responsibility for the matters involving Chris and Andrew Cuomo.

"What is clear is that 100% of [Chris Cuomo's] misdeeds are also now the misdeeds of Zucker, who didn’t launch a 'thorough review and consideration' months ago, before the damning emails and texts surfaced," Wemple's column read.

On Saturday, CNN chief media correspondent Brian Stelter noted that Chris Cuomo was not practicing ethical journalism when the news of Cuomo's firing was announced, but did not offer criticism of his own network.

“Chris Cuomo, one of the most popular anchors at CNN, one of the best-known names in television news, violated journalistic ethics and norms not once or twice, but many times. And that’s ultimately what is the result of today’s news," Stelter said.

The termination also comes after a lawyer informed CNN of sexual misconduct allegations against Chris Cuomo by Shelly Ross, his former colleague at ABC News. The allegations are unrelated to the case involving Andrew Cuomo.

The firing also comes after the prime-time program has seen a dip in ratings. Nielsen Media Research ratings showed “Cuomo Prime Time” hit an all-time low in early November with 684,000 total average viewers.

CNN's numbers in the first week of November were far below Fox News' Sean Hannity program, which had an average of 3.49 million for the same period. MSNBC's Rachel Maddow program had an average of 1.9 million for the same period.

On Monday afternoon, the New York Post reported that sources said Chris Cuomo was set to sue CNN if the network doesn't pay the $18 million remaining on his contract.