New Chris Cuomo sexual misconduct allegation emerged days before CNN firing: report
CNN reportedly learned about a new sexual misconduct allegation against its disgraced anchor Chris Cuomo just days before his firing.
The claim came Wednesday from prominent attorney Debra S. Katz, who is representing the accuser, according to The New York Times.
Katz’s client is a “former junior colleague at another network” and the newly emerged allegation against Cuomo is “unrelated to the Gov. Andrew Cuomo matter.”
The lawyer said her client “came forward because she was disgusted by Chris Cuomo’s on-air statements in response to the allegations made against his brother, Gov. Andrew Cuomo” when the CNN star addressed the scandal in March, telling viewers, “I have always cared very deeply about these issues, and profoundly so. I just wanted to tell you that.”
“She was disgusted by Chris Cuomo’s on-air statements in response to the allegations made against his brother, Gov. Andrew Cuomo.”
Notably, Katz also represents Charlotte Bennett, the second woman to accuse now-ousted New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment.
It was not immediately unknown if this newest reported revelation had any role in CNN’s firing of Cuomo on Saturday or if the allegation was the “additional information” the network referred to in its statement announcing the anchor’s termination.
“Based on the report we received regarding Chris’s conduct with his brother’s defense, we had cause to terminate,” a CNN spokesperson told the Times. “When new allegations came to us this week, we took them seriously, and saw no reason to delay taking immediate action.”
Steven Goldberg, a spokesman for Cuomo, additionally told the Times, “These apparently anonymous allegations are not true,” adding “If the goal in making these false and unvetted accusations was to see Mr. Cuomo punished by CNN, that may explain his unwarranted termination.”
“These apparently anonymous allegations are not true. If the goal in making these false and unvetted accusations was to see Mr. Cuomo punished by CNN, that may explain his unwarranted termination.”
CNN did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
UltraViolet, a leading national gender-justice organization, called for CNN to immediately fire Chris Cuomo.
(CNN)
Previous allegation
This would mark at least the second time Cuomo has been accused of sexual misconduct.
Shelley Ross, a veteran TV producer, went public in September, penning a guest essay in The New York Times alleging that Cuomo squeezed her buttock at a work function in 2005 while the two of them were colleagues at ABC News. She shared the email he had sent to her apologizing for the incident.
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“It is always disturbing to watch someone’s fall from grace,” Ross told Fox News in reaction to Cuomo’s firing. “Many people lost very important jobs in the wake of the sexual harassment scandals surrounding Gov. Cuomo.”
“I am glad that CNN will fall on the right side of history. Those who harass women, strategize to silence or smear those who come forward, must be held accountable,” Ross added.
“I am glad that CNN will fall on the right side of history. Those who harass women, strategize to silence or smear those who come forward, must be held accountable.”
Shelley Ross and Chris Cuomo were colleagues at ABC News before Cuomo moved on to CNN.
(Shelley Ross/Getty Images)
In September 2020, “Tucker Carlson Tonight” obtained a 2018 audio recording of Cuomo discussing how reporters were allegedly investigating claims that were made against him while he was an anchor for ABC News.
‘I’m always careful’
“You know, I’m always careful when I talk to media, you know?” Cuomo told former Trump attorney Michael Cohen. “Do you know how many f—– phone calls I’ve gotten from people at ABC who say that reporters are calling and lying about things they heard about me to try to get stories about me when I was at ABC? Guys calling and saying, ‘I heard he’s the Charlie Rose of ABC, used to invite women to the hotel and open up his bathrobe.’ Do I look like the kind of f—– guy who’s gotta do that?”
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“Sure. Why not?” Cohen replied with a chuckle.
Cuomo, who left ABC News in 2013 after previous anchoring “20/20” and “Good Morning America,” went into further detail about what he experienced.
“It’s lying- ‘so I already have a good source that says that he forced one woman to have sex. I just wanted to know if you heard anything like that.’ There is no woman! There is none of that!” the CNN anchor then said. “So here’s the problem: women who do work there say, ‘Oh yeah, you know, some of these men’ and naming me with other guys, ‘You know, we bumped into each other once in the elevator and he put his hand on my shoulder and he made me really uncomfortable.’ I mean, what the f—?”
Chris Cuomo once complained to former Trump attorney Michael Cohen about frequent allegations of misconduct that Cuomo claimed weren’t true.
CNN issued a statement Saturday evening announcing it had terminated Cuomo “effective immediately,” coming just days after he was suspended pending a review of the damning revelations from the New York Attorney General’s office about his involvement in protecting his brother.
“While in the process of that review, additional information has come to light. Despite the termination, we will investigate as appropriate,” CNN stated.
In a memo to staffers, CNN president Jeff Zucker wrote, “Today I let Chris know that we are ending his employment at CNN,” adding, “It goes without saying that these decisions are not easy, and there are a lot of complex factors involved. But, as always, it was important to me to be upfront with each of you.”
Cuomo released his own statement reacting to his firing.
“This is not how I want my time at CNN to end but I have already told you why and how I helped my brother,” Cuomo wrote. “So let me now say as disappointing as this is, I could not be more proud of the team at Cuomo Prime Time and the work we did as CNN’s #1 show in the most competitive time slot. I owe them all and will miss that group of special people who did really important work.”
CNN’s Chris Cuomo performed prop comedy with his brother New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo during a widely panned segment in 2020.
(CNN)
Beginning of the end
The beginning of the end for Chris Cuomo at CNN began Monday when the New York Attorney General’s office released documents from its sexual harassment investigation into ousted Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, revealing the anchor was far more involved in helping his brother than he publicly acknowledged.
Transcripts from his interview with investigators show the CNN star admitting he would reach out to media sources to find out about new accusers who have yet to come forward publicly.
“When asked, I would reach out to sources, other journalists, to see if they had heard of anybody else coming out,” Cuomo told investigators.
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Cuomo’s admission contradicts what he told CNN viewers in August when he claimed, “I never made calls to the press about my brother’s situation.”
Three days after The New York Times broke the story about Anna Ruch, who alleged the governor sexually harassed her at a 2019 wedding reception, the CNN anchor texted top Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa, “I have a lead on the wedding girl.”
CNN’s Chris Cuomo during a televised townhall with Democratic 2020 U.S. presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., dedicated to LGBTQ issues in Los Angeles, Oct. 10, 2019.
(Reuters)
In another exchange, DeRosa texted to Cuomo, “Rumor going around from politico 1-2 more ppl coming out tomorrow,” then asking him “Can u check your sources?”
Cuomo replied “on it,” later writing back “No one has heard that yet.”
The “Cuomo Prime Time” host snooped into the progress of Ronan Farrow’s reporting about his brother and relayed it to the governor’s inner circle.
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He admitted to contacting colleagues of Farrow for updates but claimed it was simply “business-as-usual” to employ such methods. Text messages released by state investigators showed DeRosa asking about “intel” the CNN anchor had about Farrow’s report on March 15, to which he replied it wasn’t ready for publication. Farrow’s story was eventually published on March 18.
Additionally, the transcript from investigators’ interview with Democratic strategist and Andrew Cuomo ally Lis Smith showed Chris Cuomo had forwarded her documents regarding the governor’s second accuser Charlotte Bennett and her “time in college.”
Fox News’ David Rutz and Brian Flood contributed to this report.
