In a column published by MSNBC on Tuesday evening, freelance political writer Laura Bassett joined the chorus of politicians and media figures calling on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) to resign in the wake of the state attorney general’s report detailing his pattern of sexual misconduct.
But Bassett’s column offered a more dynamic take, as she argued that Cuomo’s younger brother, Chris Cuomo, should resign or be fired from his role as an anchor on CNN.
The Cuomo brothers should both resign. My latest for @msnbc: https://t.co/FfbZdhccN6
— Laura Bassett (@LEBassett) August 3, 2021
“His (Andrew Cuomo’s) brother, too, should resign from covering politics or be fired,” Bassett wrote. “It’s extremely inappropriate and unethical for a journalist to advise and craft the statements of a politician, regardless of family relation.”
Chris Cuomo has hosted “Cuomo Prime Time,” a nightly news analysis program on CNN, since June 2018. During the early months of the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, Chris invited Andrew on his show for several interviews, calling him the “best politician in the country” and scoffing at the notion that his journalistic objectivity had been compromised.
“The anchor’s attempt at a journalistic compromise was to abstain from interviewing his brother about the sexual harassment scandal,” Bassett wrote. “But both men’s careers have benefited greatly from their cheeky, high-profile, softball interviews during a very dark time in the nation’s history. ”
In February, CNN admitted to the Associated Press that it had ignored internal rules to allow the younger Cuomo to interview his brother about his handling of the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic.
Cuomo never asked his brother about the sexual misconduct scandal, a decision that now seems damning for his career. The aforementioned report, which was released yesterday by New York Attorney General Letitia James, revealed that Cuomo received classified state information about his brother’s accusers.
Bassett also noted that Andrew Cuomo was “lionized” at the beginning of the pandemic, but pointed to the governor’s underreporting of nursing home deaths as a further indication that he is unfit for public office.
“Cuomo said claims of data inaccuracies are a ‘lie’ while admitting ‘we should have provided more information faster,’ Bassett wrote. “Now, unsurprisingly, he seems to be lying again about his egregious and illegal treatment of women.”
Bassett concluded by saying the citizens of New York “deserve better than a lying, harassing, misogynistic creep,” while CNN viewers “deserve better than a news anchor who is working on behalf of a politician he covers and helps to manipulate public opinion of him.”
Chris Cuomo did not address anything about his brother’s scandal, or his own involvement in it, during Tuesday’s episode of “Cuomo Prime Time.” Though at least one CNN staffer has called on him to resign, the network still stands behind the disgraced anchor.
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