CNN never interviewed Chris Cuomo, but a third-party investigation found that he lied to viewers

The Washington Post

"The network’s decision (to fire Cuomo on Saturday) was almost certainly accelerated by the emergence last week of a sexual misconduct claim against the host, made by a lawyer who described her client as a former junior colleague who encountered Cuomo before he joined CNN in 2013," reports The Washington Post's Jeremy Barr and Sarah Ellison. "Yet the cable news giant took pains over the weekend to assert that Cuomo had already done enough to merit dismissal earlier this year, when he helped his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, combat an unrelated sexual harassment scandal." They add: "While the network initially expected to interview Cuomo as part of its evaluation, it did not end up doing so." But CNN did ask the law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore to review their anchor’s conduct after the New York attorney general released Cuomo's texts and emails to his brother Andrew Cuomo's staff as well as his statements to investigators. "Cravath returned its report to CNN on Friday morning, showing that the anchor had lied in his statements to viewers during his live show ('I never made calls to the press about my brother’s situation,' he said on-air in August) about the extent of his involvement," The Post reports, adding: "In the interim, CNN had learned last Wednesday of the sexual misconduct claim against Chris Cuomo from employment lawyer Debra S. Katz. By Friday, Katz said, she was in talks with CNN about the possibility of 'providing documentary evidence' of her client’s allegations and making the person, who has not been identified, available for an interview. But CNN didn’t wait for that process to play out. (CNN president Jeff) Zucker said he made the decision to fire Cuomo on Friday night and informed the host on Saturday afternoon by phone." Zucker told CNN employees this morning that Cuomo "clearly violated our standards and practices. The network had cause to fire him.”

ALSO:

• Chris Cuomo announces he's ending his SiriusXM radio show in wake of his CNN firing: Cuomo, who was absent from his radio show today, said in a statement posted to Twitter: "The way my time ended at CNN was hard. While I have a thick skin, I also have a family, for him the past week has been extraordinarily difficult. So, right now, I have to take a step back and focus on what comes next. That means I will no longer be doing my SiriusXM radio show. I am extremely grateful for the support I have received from SiriusXM throughout my time there. I also want to express my sincere appreciation for my loyal listeners. I will miss our conversations a great deal — but I look forward to being back in touch with you all in the future.”