CNN director Chris Licht faced “furious criticism” from the cable network public for giving former President Donald Trump a platform to repeat lies and conspiracy theories at Wednesday’s Town Hall.
The ratings-troubled station, which Licht sought to shift away from the left-leaning reporting of his predecessor, was humiliated by putting host Kaitlan Collins in a “no-win situation.”
“I can’t believe anyone thought this was a good idea.” An official told the Washington Post..
The network’s in-house media reporter, Oliver Darcy, also revealed that there was a handshake shortly after the 70-minute City Hall session at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire ended.
“CNN and its new network head, Chris Licht, have faced a flurry of internal and external criticism over the event.” Darcy wrote in the “Reliable Sources” newsletter:
On Thursday, Licht tried to quell disobedient staff at a 9 a.m. editorial meeting, a person familiar with the matter told the Post.
“You don’t have to like the former president’s answer, but you can’t say we didn’t understand it,” Licht said, according to audio provided to the newspaper.
Licht also rejected allegations that Collins had not reacted strongly enough to Trump’s allegations of election fraud and other issues.
“Katelan pressured him many times and made the news,” Licht told staff.
“We made a lot of news,” he said, adding, “That’s what we do.”
But critics accused Collins of allowing the former president to repeat allegations of cheating in the 2020 election. Trump also mocked columnist E. Jean Carroll, who won a defamation lawsuit against the former president after accusing him of rape. Mr Trump denied the allegations.
President Trump called Collins “mean” for claiming the election was “rigged,” drawing cheers from the partisan Republican crowd.
“We all may have been uncomfortable hearing people clapping, but that was also an important part of the story,” Licht told staff.
The network’s head said the audience covers a “wide swath of America.”
The Post reached out to CNN for comment.
MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough ripped apart a rival network on Thursday.
The co-host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” said, “Let’s just tell a little bit about how breathtakingly dangerous what we saw last night was.”
“This bogus virus is being unleashed upon the American people.”
Licht, however, is a fervent admirer of Collins, whose star status is rising amid reports that he will be promoted from co-host of CNN’s morning show to the prime slot at 9 p.m. Plums. It seems
“I couldn’t be more proud of her,” Licht told staff.
“Tonight Kaitlan Collins personified what it means to be a world-class journalist. She asked tough, impartial and revealing questions,” a network spokesperson said Wednesday. said in a statement to the media.
“And she followed up and fact-checked with President Trump in real-time to provide voters with key information about President Trump’s position as the Republican frontrunner heading into the 2024 election. “
“It is CNN’s role and responsibility to get answers and hold those in power to account,” the statement added.
