So, earlier this month, CNN’s Chris Cuomo threw a tantrum at a Trump supporter who called him “Fredo.” We don’t know the context leading up to the profanity-laced video of Cuomo threatening to throw the guy down some stairs. Cuomo likened the word to an anti-Italian slur. CNN even said that he was defending himself against an ethnic slur. It’s not an ethnic slur. Please—there are too man people who know or have seen "The Godfather" who understand what was being said here.
[Warning: strong language]
The late actor John Cazale played Fredo, the older brother of Michael Corleone, played by Al Pacino. Fredo is weak, easily manipulated, and not suited to take over the family business. In a way, it’s a slight dig at Cuomo, whose older brother is the governor of New York. It’s another way of telling someone they’re an idiot, second-rate, or less than. So, I guess I can see why Cuomo would get mad, but an ethnic slur? Please. CNN doubled down, which was disastrous because folks found multiple clips of people uttering that word in various past segments on the network. And this is where this whole silly narrative of trying to make everything racist or ethnically insensitive runs off the rails. I mean it was a trainwreck in slow motion. This whole circus finally had died down when it was revealed that Cuomo referred to himself as “Fredo” (via Washington Examiner):
CNN prime-time anchor Chris Cuomo, who got into an altercation with a man who called him "Fredo," once referred to himself by the nickname "Fredo" in a radio interview back in 2010.
The comment from Cuomo, which was first resurfaced by the New York Post, comes a day after a video of his confrontation went viral. The two men in the fight exchanged words, Cuomo threatened him, and the CNN anchor accused him of using a slur by calling him "Fredo."
Cuomo appeared on Curtis Sliwa's radio show in regards to whether or not his brother, Andrew Cuomo, planned to seek the Democratic nomination for governor.
“There is a group of people — politicos — who always hint they might run, but not necessarily plunge all the way, and they are members of la Cuomo," Sliwa said and dubbed the family "la Cuomo Nostra."
“Who am I, then, Fredo?” Cuomo asked in response.
Well, it was short. It’s now long gone, but it was a fun couple of days this month.