Former CNN host Brian Stelter defended the network's reporting during the Trump era in the aftermath of Chris Licht being fired as CEO on Wednesday following an embarrassing in-depth profile from The Atlantic.
Stelter hosted "Reliable Sources" and had become a staple within the network when it was run by Jeff Zucker. It did not take long for Licht to fire Stelter after taking over. Licht's tenure as CEO barely lasted a year.
Licht had attempted to revive CNN's brand, which has become the go-to example when Americans talk about fake news, and tried to steer it away from the advocacy journalism it became known for when former President Donald Trump was in office. CNN employees became upset at Licht's vision for the company, saying it was not them who needed to change.
CNBC media reporter Alex Sherman said that tone from Licht offended the workers because "there are thousands of journalists there, and they have been doing journalism for the past few years..."
"A lot of us, when we were at CNN in the Trump years, felt we were advocating for the truth, advocating for reality. Others felt that was left-leaning. But the point is CNN was evolving because of the political environment," Stelter said.
"I think it is right that there is this desire to have this much more calm, less controversial political environment that CNN can then cover, but we don't live in that world. In fact, if anything, it's only going to get more chaotic with Donald Trump being the leading contender for the GOP nomination," he continued.
Talking about CNN, @sherman4949 says, "there are thousands of journalists there, and they have been doing journalism for the past few years..."@brianstelter adds, "A lot of us, when we were at CNN in the Trump years, felt we were advocating for the truth, advocating for… pic.twitter.com/NC2eY7YLGN
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) June 7, 2023