Video Released of Chris Cuomo Testimony in Ex-NY Gov.’s Sexual Harassment Investigation
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The New York Attorney General’s office has released video of former CNN anchor Chris Cuomo’s testimony from the independent investigation into sexual harassment allegations against his brother, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
The nearly six hours’ worth of video is footage from Cuomo’s previously unsealed deposition.
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The videos are part of what the New York attorney general’s office calls a “final set” of videos, transcripts and exhibits made public as part of New York state law. Evidence started to be released following the filing of a criminal complaint against the governor in late October.
Chris Cuomo was fired from CNN in early December, after being suspended a few days earlier, following the release of his deposition with the New York Attorney General’s office and other documents unsealed as part of the investigation.
The deposition and documents showed that the former CNN anchor had an active role in helping his governor brother handle the sexual harassment allegations then-Gov. Cuomo was facing, including gathering information about stories in the works. In particular, Chris Cuomo explained how he leveraged his network of sources to find out more about a Ronan Farrow story in the works and about one of then-Gov. Cuomo’s accusers. He also asked one of the governor’s top aides, Melissa DeRosa, to help respond to some of the allegations.
In the deposition, the CNN anchor said he spoke regularly with his then-governor brother and his staff about the New York leader’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The deposition even involves an exchange about Alec Baldwin, who wanted to speak out about “cancel culture” in response to accusations against the governor.
In addition to elements from the deposition previously reported by The Hollywood Reporter, the video shows Chris Cuomo explaining how he spoke to Andrew Cuomo about the case, brother to brother.
“It wasn’t this tactical, what do you do, what do you not do. If you ask me a question, I will give you an answer. You want my take on how something is playing, I’ll tell you. But I’m not part of his team and I wasn’t part of manipulation of any kind,” he said. “For me, it was the way you would probably talk to your siblings.”
The video, from a July deposition, shows Chris explaining his take on the allegations and how he felt his brother should respond to them.
“It was very important to me that my brother not suggest that everything that happened was OK just because he meant it in a benign way, that that’s not how it works,” Chris Cuomo said.
He adds that after one set of allegations he told his brother: “Tell the truth and you tell it now. And I remember other people being more deliberative about it.”
Governor Cuomo resigned in August.
The only criminal charge filed over sexual harassment allegations against the governor was dismissed earlier this month.
