Embattled network CNN has become the center of another alleged scandal, one year after former president Jeff Zucker resigned over his relationship with another executive.

Federico Quadrani, the executive producer of The Lead with Jake Tapper, looks to be following Zucker’s lead.

The CNN “golden boy,” known as “Fede” by his coworkers, was reportedly ousted from the network last week after it was revealed that he also had a relationship with a subordinate.

According to Page Six, Quadrani had nearly been cleared by an internal “investigation of sorts,” when Tapper was “presented with something he couldn’t ignore” by a staffer who found it “accidentally.”

Quadrani had actually worked under Zucker at MSNBC before moving to CNN in 2013.

CNN staffers were “shocked” by the news, per the outlet’s reporting.

Both Quadrani and the subordinate were “missing” from the network’s Washington office on Friday.

Source: Page Six

CNN senior investigative correspondent Drew Griffin has died after a long battle with cancer.

Griffin died on Saturday. He was 60 years old.

“Drew’s death is a devastating loss to CNN and our entire profession,” CNN CEO Chris Licht said. “A highly acclaimed investigative journalist, Drew’s work had incredible impact and embodied the mission of this organization in every way.”

CNN anchor Don Lemon came to tears during his emotional announcement Monday morning, informing the viewers of Griffin’s passing.

Griffin was an award-winning journalist, earning Emmys, Peabodys and Murrows throughout his time at CNN.

“Fearless and artful at the same time, he knew how to push a story forward to its limits, but also tell it in a way that would make everyone understand,” said Michael Bass, CNN’s Executive Vice President of Programming. “How many times has he chased an unwilling interviewee? How many times has he spoken truth to power? How many times has he made a difference on something important … It was an honor to be his colleague and to be witness to his work and the ways it changed the world.”

Source: CNN

CNN has fired a slew of on-air correspondents as part of the network’s latest string of cost-cutting measures.

Political analyst Chris Cillizza, who’s been with the network since 2017, was among those axed by the network.

Other prominent on-air talents that were cut by the network include Alison Kosik, Martin Savidge, Alex Field, and Mary Ann Fox.

CNN CEO Chris Licht also gutted HLN, the cable network formerly known as CNN Headline News, scrapping all of the network’s live programming. That includes longtime host Robin Mead, who’s been at the network since 2001. The “Morning Express with Robin Meade” production staff was also fired.

The pink slips came after Licht sent a company-wide memo on November 30 informing the staff that layoffs were underway.

Licht took over as head of the network in May, promising to implement changes to cut costs and revive the network’s poor ratings.

The cuts come as the network’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, vowed to investors that it would cut $3 billion in costs.

Source: Variety | New York Post | Daily Mail

CNN CEO Chris Licht announced that the network had begun the process of laying off an unspecified number of employees.

“Our people are the heart and soul of this organization. It is incredibly hard to say goodbye to any one member of the CNN team, much less many. I recently described this process as a gut punch, because I know that is how it feels for all of us,” Licht wrote in a memo Wednesday morning.

“It will be a difficult time for everyone,” he added.

According to Licht’s memo, the job cuts will affect a limited number of people, largely paid contributors, as part of a recalibrated reporting strategy.

The layoffs come amid decreasing morale at the network, which has already undergone significant turnover this year.

In late October, Licht warned employees that the network would be undergoing a restructuring due to “widespread concern over the global economic outlook.”

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Longtime CNN anchor Jim Sciutto has been absent from the airwaves after network bosses ordered him to take personal leave and address a “personal situation.”

Sciutto was the subject of an internal investigation earlier this year after he had a “serious fall” while in Amsterdam.

The anchor and his producer stopped in Amsterdam, where the fall took place, while traveling home from reporting on the conflict in Ukraine earlier this year, according to The Daily Beast. Sciutto was said to have recovered, but the incident prompted CNN to launch an internal investigation.

The outlet noted that the network had ordered Sciutto to take leave to deal with a “personal situation.”

As of this reporting, neither Sciutto nor CNN has made a public statement on the matter.

Source: Daily Mail | The Daily Beast

Another liberal reporter has abruptly announced their departure from CNN.

White House correspondent John Harwood shared the news of his leaving the network on Twitter.

“Today’s my last day at CNN,” he wrote on Friday, adding that he was “proud of the work” he did with the network.

“I’ve been lucky to serve the best in American media,” he continued. “Look forward to figuring out what’s next.”

A network spokesperson told media outlets that CNN appreciates “John’s work covering the White House, and we wish him all the best.”

The Hill noted that Harwood is “the latest in a slew of top talent” that has left CNN as new network President Chris Licht’s vision takes shape. Licht has vowed to deliver a renewed commitment to objectivity and fairness, the outlet reported.

During his final day at CNN, Harwood commended President Joe Biden’s divisive speech about MAGA Republicans being a “threat to democracy.”

“The core point he made in that political speech about a threat to democracy is true,” Harwood said on Friday. “That’s something that’s not easy for us, as journalists, to say. We’re brought up to believe there [are] two different political parties with different points of view, and we don’t take sides in honest disagreements between them. But that’s not what we’re talking about. These are not honest disagreements. The Republican Party right now is led by a dishonest demagogue.”

Sources: Fox News | The Hill

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY…
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Longtime CNN contributor Jeffrey Toobin announced that he’s leaving the network.

“Friends, I’ve decided that, after 20 years, I’m leaving CNN after my vacation,” Toobin wrote on Twitter.

“Was great to spend my last day on air with pals Wolf [Blitzer], Anderson [Cooper], and Don [Lemon]. Love all my former colleagues,” he added.

A CNN spokesperson confirmed Toobin’s departure, saying that the network is “grateful for Jeffrey’s contributions to the network over the years and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.”

Toobin, a legal analyst, was placed on leave in October 2020 after an incident in which he exposed himself during a Zoom call with his colleagues at The New Yorker. The outlet subsequently fired him.

When Toobin returned to CNN in June 2021, he said: “I’ve got a lot to rebuild. But I feel very privileged and lucky that I’m going to be able to try and do that.”

Source: The Hill