Jake Tapper agrees Chris Cuomo put CNN ‘in a bad spot’

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• CNN lead anchor Jake Tapper slams colleague Chris Cuomo for how he handled recent scandals involving his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
• In an interview, Tapper said he “cannot imagine a world in which anybody in journalism thinks that that was appropriate.” 
• Chris Cuomo attended his brother’s strategy calls, advising the governor on how to respond to sexual harassment allegations.

CNN lead anchor Jake Tapper slammed colleague Chris Cuomo on Thursday over advising his brother, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, D., on how to handle the recent sexual harassment allegations against him. Tapper said no one in journalism would find Chris Cuomo’s conduct appropriate.

Tapper made the comments in an interview with The New York Times opinion writer Kara Swisher.

“[Cuomo] offered an on-air apology to his colleagues. Is that enough for you? Is his apology enough and does it affect you?,” Swisher asked the CNN anchor. 

“Such a complicated issue. And obviously this is my company and my home and my workplace. And so, that said, I cannot imagine a world in which anybody in journalism thinks that that was appropriate,” Tapper said. “In his apology that he delivered on air, [he] said that he put us in a bad spot. And I would also agree with that.

He added he wants to be “fair” and “ethical.” 

During a staff-wide meeting this week, CNN President Jeff Zucker addressed concerns and reprimanded Cuomo. Zucker said, “He did cross a line,” but will not be disciplined for his conduct.

CNN has suffered a series of blunders involving the Cuomo brothers, starting from the silly interviews they had when the pandemic began.

Tapper, on the other hand, was caught in a similar predicament when he gave advice to Republican Sean Parnell’s campaign. Fox News reported Tapper attempted to persuade Parnell not to run against incumbent Democrat ep. Conor Lamb in the 2020 election. 

Parnell is a U.S. Army combat veteran who is now running for the open Senate seat in Pennsylvania. Tapper told him he would be better off running in a safer district for Republicans. 

During the Swisher interview, Tapper also defended CNN from Brooke Baldwin. The ex-anchor left CNN in April and revealed the lack of opportunities for women at the network. Baldwin also said CNN’s most influential and highest-paid people were men.

“I think what Brooke said was wrong,” Tapper said. “I love Brooke, I’m a fan of Brooke, but I think what she said was just factually incorrect,”

Source: Fox News