According to a report, CNN’s former president Jeff Zucker instructed his staff to refrain from investigating the “lab leak theory” regarding the origins of COVID-19, as he believed it was a “talking point” of the Trump administration.
A CNN insider, who was described as “well-placed,” informed Fox News Digital that Zucker gave this directive in the early stages of the pandemic.
The insider stated that people are gradually starting to become more aware of the situation.
“It is kind of crazy that we didn’t chase it harder.”
Following a recent government report that suggests an accidental leak from a Chinese laboratory as the most probable cause for the COVID-19 outbreak, mainstream news outlets such as CNN, The New York Times, MSNBC, among others, have come under heavy criticism.
During the early stages of the pandemic, various renowned media personalities, public health officials, and Democratic Party elected officials discredited the “lab leak” theory, labeling it as “debunked.” Some even considered it racist to bring up the topic. The Washington Post has reached out to CNN and Zucker for their comments on the matter.
One of Zucker’s subordinates who allegedly implemented his instruction was Oliver Darcy, the media reporter for CNN. During the early days of the pandemic, Darcy authored a piece titled “Here’s how to debunk coronavirus misinformation and conspiracy theories from friends and family,” which aligned with his boss’s reported order.
Darcy discussed how the pandemic had resulted in increased communication among family and friends, mostly through online or phone channels. This article was published on March 28, 2020.
“But, in some cases, relatives and friends share poor information — whether it is bad science related to how to prevent the virus, debunked rumors about cities being put on lockdown, or conspiracy theories about the origins of Covid-19,” he wrote.
According to Fareed Zakaria, the host of “Fareed Zakaria GPS” on CNN, any misinformation, particularly during a public health crisis, can have dangerous consequences. During a broadcast, Zakaria remarked that the “far right” had adopted its conspiracy theory regarding the lab leak theory.
Recently, independent journalist Tom Elliott shared a Twitter thread consisting of clips from various MSNBC and CNN personalities who discredited the possibility of the lab leak as a “conspiracy theory.”
Under Zucker’s leadership, CNN became the news network that was most critical of then-President Donald Trump.
Trump had a well-known rivalry with CNN correspondents, with Jim Acosta, the White House reporter, being the most combative during news conferences.
In 2021, Zucker resigned as CNN’s president after it was revealed that he had a consensual, long-term relationship with Allison Gollust, the network’s top marketing officer.
Chris Licht took over as CNN’s president, tasked by Warner Bros. Discovery, the network’s parent company, with moving the network’s programming away from partisan commentary and towards unbiased news reporting.
The FAKE NEWS is changing its stories under fear that Trump will get back into the White House, conservatives get control of Congress, and prosecute their lies/crimes…
repeat Trump was Right, keep saying it until it gets into your thick scull.
First of all it was never “Debunked” and the article specifically says the boss told “journalists?” NOT to Investigate??? WHAAT? Even if it were a Trump talking point, that might be WHY a “journalist” would investigate IT!??? This is why we have had virtually a Death of the Fourth Estate in the USA at this time in history and we may be realizing it is/was the most important cog in the wheel of a powerful FREE country!!
Is there anybody who can’t see that media outlets such as CNN were playing a game of “gotcha”, with a reflexive contradiction to anything Trump said? As though the only consequence to this approach was that they would be part of the “insiders club” (natural, real-world consequences be damned). And if Fauci said so, that meant Trump’s views were “debunked”. And if even a handful of the media “personalities” said so, then any “Trump talking point” was “discredited”. Funny how, just a few months later, truth obviously says a little differently.