Media top headlines December 14
In media news today, charges filed against a CNN producer of inducing minors for sex reveal shocking details, progressives erupt over Elon Musk being named TIME 'Person of the Year,' and The Atlantic's David Frum suggests unvaccinated patients should be treated last in hospitals.
Disgraced ex-New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will be forced to return the money from the proceeds of his book written during the COVID-19 pandemic after a 12-1 vote by the Joint Commission on Public Ethics.
Cuomo will have to return $5.1 million earned to the state by next month after the watchdog ethics panel concluded that the governor had violated pledges not to use state resources or government staff to prepare the project. The resolution was drafted by commissioner David McNamara. Cuomo, McNamara said, now "lacked the legal authority to engage in outside activity and receive compensation in regard to the book," the New York Post reported.
Andrew Cuomo speaks during the daily media briefing at the Office of the Governor of the State of New York in June 2020. (Jeenah Moon/Getty Images)
Cuomo's book, titled "American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic," was widely criticized when it was released in October 2020 because it seemed as though the Democratic governor was taking credit for sterling leadership while the pandemic was still raging in New York.
He enjoyed much glowing media coverage at the onset of the pandemic, with even President Biden calling his work the "gold standard" of leadership. But in the following months, Cuomo and his administration were condemned for the thousands of COVID-related deaths in New York nursing homes. The governor then faced several allegations of sexual harassment by former staffers. He resigned in disgrace last August following a report from the state attorney general that concluded he had sexually harassed at least 11 women from 2013 to 2020.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is also investigating Cuomo's book deal, along with the FBI, and the Brooklyn US Attorney’s Office.
Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York, arrives at Trump Tower with Melissa DeRosa in New York City on Jan. 18, 2017. (REUTERS/Stephanie Keith)
Prominent New Yorkers and lawmakers who had spoken out about Cuomo throughout his many scandals said Tuesday's news was a good first step toward accountability.
Cuomo's little brother Chris was also wrapped up in the governor's scandal. Documents revealed he had helped his older brother as an unofficial adviser and even used his media influence to try and dig up dirt on the governor's accusers, in addition to spying on investigative journalists' reports on the scandal. CNN fired Chris Cuomo after these revelations. Following Chris Cuomo's firing, it discovered he, too, had fielded a second sexual harassment allegation following an accusation from her former ABC colleague Shelley Ross, but it is unclear whether the alleged misconduct played a role in the termination.
CNN’s Chris Cuomo performed prop comedy with his brother New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo during a widely panned segment in 2020. (CNN)
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Chris Cuomo, like his sibling, has also had recent troubles with book deals. In the wake of his CNN controversies, HarperCollins canceled his forthcoming title, "Deep Denial."
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