After new documents revealed the cosy and improper nature of his relationship with aides to his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, CNN has suspended prime time anchor Chris Cuomo “indefinitely, pending further evaluation”.  

In Cuomo’s absence, a second hour of “Anderson Cooper 360” will air on Tuesday night. 

The suspension’s announcement on Tuesday sent a shockwave through cable news. CNN’s most-watched hour of the day is usually Cuomo’s 9 pm show. Despite a flurry of sexual assault allegations against his brother, which culminated in the governor’s resignation three months ago, he was determined to stay on TV this year.

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However, new documents released on Monday revealed that the veteran journalist was far more involved in defining his brother’s defence than previously thought.

“The New York Attorney General’s office released transcripts and exhibits Monday that shed new light on Chris Cuomo’s involvement in his brother’s defense,” a CNN spokesperson said Tuesday evening. “The documents, which we were not privy to before their public release, raise serious questions.”

“When Chris admitted to us that he had offered advice to his brother’s staff, he broke our rules and we acknowledged that publicly,” the spokesperson continued. “But we also appreciated the unique position he was in and understood his need to put family first and job second.”

“However, these documents point to a greater level of involvement in his brother’s efforts than we previously knew,” the spokesperson added. “As a result, we have suspended Chris indefinitely, pending further evaluation.”

Chris Cuomo was suspended after a barrage of criticism from those who claimed he had broken widely accepted journalistic norms. Employees at CNN expressed their displeasure with the anchor’s behaviour. Charlotte Bennett, a former aide to Andrew Cuomo who accused him of sexual harassment in February, demanded that CNN “immediately take action”.

“Anything short of firing Chris Cuomo reflects a network lacking both morals and a backbone,” Bennett said in a tweet Tuesday. 

According to a CNN source familiar with the situation, the “Cuomo Prime Time” team had been planning for Tuesday’s broadcast up until Chris Cuomo’s suspension was announced. Cooper’s team was also caught off guard by the news, and they were forced to scramble to fill the extra hour. 

After the news broke, an emotional Chris Cuomo met with the cast and crew of the show. 

Text messages and transcripts of interviews with investigators who led the probe into allegations against the governor were among the documents released by New York Attorney General Letitia James. 

Text messages between Chris Cuomo and Melissa DeRosa, a top aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo at the time, were found in the cache of documents, and they suggested he was instrumental in helping to craft a defence against a flood of sexual misconduct allegations.

The text messages also confirmed that Chris Cuomo attempted to use his press connections to assist the then-team governor’s in preparing as accusers began to make their stories public. 

He further admitted to investigators that he tried to learn more about journalist Ronan Farrow’s story. The anchor defended the practise, claiming that it was standard.

“The idea of one reporter calling another to find out about what’s coming down the pipe is completely business-as-usual,” he said.

The “Cuomo Prime Time” anchor also said on the air in August, “I never attacked nor encouraged anyone to attack any woman who came forward. I never made calls to the press about my brother’s situation.”

Monday’s revelations cast some doubt on his statement about his interactions with the press.

“I would — when asked, I would reach out to sources, other journalists, to see if they had heard of anybody else coming out,” Chris Cuomo said during testimony.

Chris Cuomo also said under oath what he told CNN viewers earlier this year: That he “never influenced or attempted to control CNN’s coverage of my family.”

During the questioning, he reiterated that sentiment, saying, “If I had tried to influence any of the reporting at CNN or anywhere else, I guarantee you people would know, and so would a lot of others.”

In its May statement, CNN had said, “Chris has not been involved in CNN’s extensive coverage of the allegations against Governor Cuomo — on air or behind the scenes.” The network’s statement added, “In part because, as he has said on his show, he could never be objective. But also because he often serves as a sounding board for his brother. However, it was inappropriate to engage in conversations that included members of the Governor’s staff, which Chris acknowledges. He will not participate in such conversations going forward.”

The anchor at the time also took to his show to say that he is “family first and job second” and apologized for how he helped his brother.

“It will not happen again. It was a mistake, because I put my colleagues here, who I believe are the best in the business, in a bad spot,” he said. “I never intended for that I would never intend for that and I am sorry for that.”

While a report on the sexual misconduct allegations against Andrew Cuomo was released in August, James’ office continues with a separate investigation into allegations he misused state resources for the development, production and promotion of a book he wrote on the pandemic.

Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for Andrew Cuomo, called the latest release of transcripts, documents and videos a “manipulated release.”

“New Yorkers are no one’s fool and James and her colleagues’ obvious misuse of government resources to damage political opponents is as obvious and repugnant as it is unethical and illegal,” Azzopardi said in a statement.