CNN Host Chris Cuomo Used His Media Sources To Find Out Info On Brother Andrew’s Accusers

Documents released by the New York Attorney General’s Office show that CNN host Chris Cuomo used his contacts in the media to try to find information on women who had accused his brother Andrew Cuomo, then governor of the state of New York, of sexual harassment. The documents were released on Monday by the Attorney General’s Office of the state of New York.

While Chris Cuomo has previously admitted that he provided advice to his brother and his staff over the response to the crises, the documents reveal that his involvement in assisting the then-governor was far bigger and more intimate than previously known.

Following incoming media reports detailing alleged sexual harassment by Governor Andrew Cuomo, Chris Cuomo communicated consistently with Melissa DeRosa, who was at the time the governor’s top aide. This is according to exhibits from the Attorney General’s investigation and transcript of his interview with the state’s investigators, both of which were obtained by The New York Times. He also advocated for the governor’s office as it attempted to weather the storm of charges, and he prepared comments for the governor to use during this chaos.

“Please let me help with the prep,” Chris Cuomo said to DeRosa in an early March text message. Three days after the New York Times reported in March that Andrew Cuomo attempted to kiss a lady named Anna Ruch in an unwelcome advance at a wedding, Chris Cuomo emailed his brother’s assistant  DeRosa, saying: “I have a lead on the wedding girl.”

Several hours after the publication of this piece, CNN published a statement claiming that the news organization will be analyzing the documents in question.

CNN’s Matt Dornic said, “the thousands of pages of additional transcripts and exhibits that were released today by the New York Attorney General deserve a thorough review and consideration. We will be having conversations and seeking additional clarity about their significance as they relate to CNN over the next several days.”

In August, Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced his resignation after state Attorney General Letitia James, who is currently running for governor, released her report on the alleged misconduct by Cuomo. Andrew Cuomo has maintained denials of any misconduct. The governor’s brother, Chris Cuomo, has previously stated that he was not an official advisor to his brother, but he has admitted to counseling him and to being one of the individuals who persuaded the governor to resign.

It was revealed in court documents that Chris Cuomo spoke with “sources” about the many claims against his brother that had been reported on. Chris Cuomo admitted to investigators that he had spoken with various “sources” about the allegations against his brother. He also stated that he had spoken with his sources regarding upcoming news from media outlets that had not yet been published.

“I would – when asked, I would reach out to sources, other journalists, to see if they had heard of anybody else coming out,” Cuomo told investigators.

Chris Cuomo did identify the name of the source that he talked to about Ruch but the AG office redacted the individual’s name.

The investigators asked Chris Cuomo, “And so you heard from someone some information about Anna Ruch. Who is the person you heard information from?” Cuomo replied vaguely, saying, “a source”.

He said that he had received a phone call from someone who knew the bride’s family and that a friend of his had heard that “maybe she had been put up to it.”

It’s not clear if Cuomo was referring to Ruch or someone else when he said this. Aside from that, there was no more information about the event contained in the transcript. Derosa’s attorney and Ruch denied CNBC’s requests to comment.

Chris Cuomo sent a text message to DeRosa on March 12 in which he sent a complete written statement for the governor.

The text reads, “I will not resign, I cannot resign. I understand the political pressure I understand the stakes of political warfare, and that’s what this is… And I understand the conformity that can be forced by cancel culture”

A text message sent by DeRosa to Cuomo on March 9 indicates that Cuomo’s staff was considering making a public statement regarding the Attorney General’s probe. Cuomo’s response to the text was “lose last”.

The message from Cuomo seems it could mean to encourage DeRosa to take out the final line of the proposed statement, which is: “The governor’s previous statement that he has never touched anyone inappropriately stands.”

DeRosa also texted Chris Cuomo in March, saying, “Rumor going around from politico 1-2 more ppl coming out tomorrow. Can u check your sources?” Cuomo responded, saying, “On it.” and said in the following message, “No one has heard that yet.”

In March, DeRosa and Chris Cuomo also discussed a piece by Ronan Farrow, an investigative reporter for the New Yorker, that had yet to be published. The story ended up being published on March 18th. On March 14, four days before the story was published, Chris Cuomo texted DeRosa: “If If ronan has nothing better than boylan thats a great sign.”

“Did u get any more intel?” DeRosa asked him a day later. “Story not ready for tomorrow,” Chris Cuomo responded that day.

In his statement to investigators, Cuomo claimed that he had spoken with “another journalist” about the upcoming release of the Farrow piece. However, although he said he did not inform Farrow about the incident, he stated that his attempts to contact with a colleague journalist about a forthcoming piece were “business as usual.”

Lindsey Boylan, a former Andrew Cuomo staffer was the focus of Farrow’s story. Boylan claims that while on a private jet, the governor told her, “Let’s play strip poker”.