17 December 2021: Bottom Story of the Day - CNN's Anderson Cooper on Chris Cuomo's Firing

Anderson Cooper Says He Feels ‘Terrible’ for Friend Chris Cuomo But Supports His Firing from CNN

The late-night comedy show "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" seems like a really strange place to discuss CNN's journalism ethics quagmire, but that's where we're at in the Chris Cuomo saga, who was fired for unethical conduct in support of his powerful politician brother, the now resigned-in-disgrace Andrew M. Cuomo. Here's an excerpt from this report, involving Anderson Cooper, the news presenter who announced Cuomo's firing on-air.

Anderson Cooper addressed Chris Cuomo’s recent ousting from CNN, saying he feels “terrible” for his friend and colleague but supports the network’s decision to fire the primetime anchor.

Cooper made the remarks while sitting down with Stephen Colbert on Thursday’s Late Show, when the host quickly shifted from a light conversation about omelets to Cuomo’s recent scandal.

“I know that journalists don’t like to be the story, or at least that’s the thing you guys say, but CNN is the story in many ways right now,” Colbert said.

The host went on to recap that Cuomo was suddenly fired from CNN following news that he helped his brother then-governor Andrew Cuomo, deal with accusations of sexual harassment and misconduct.

“Look, I don’t want anything bad to happen to somebody who is a colleague and a friend of mine, and I feel terrible for him and his family,’ said Cooper. ‘That being said, journalists have strict ethics and strict rules that we are to abide by and if you don’t abide by them, there are repercussions. I wish Chris the best, and I’m sorry how all this played out.”

Colbert also asked the CNN anchor if he knew about Cuomo’s impending firing before it happened, prompting Cooper to reveal that he found out when the news broke on-air.

Video of that announcement appears in this 1 December 2021 timeline entry.