CNN prime-time anchor Chris Cuomo clarified remarks he made that suggested he was no longer happy in his role at the network.
Cuomo, who is still working after being diagnosed with the coronavirus, shared personal thoughts about his job and his profession as a whole during a candid moment on his radio show Monday. After getting attention for saying he doesn’t “like what I do professionally,” the anchor attempted to explain what he meant the next day.
“I never said it. I never meant it,” Cuomo said when he returned to the airwaves on Tuesday before crediting CNN for its support while he fights off the COVID-19 virus, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
“I have never been in a better position, professionally, than I am in right now,” he told listeners. “They’ve been so good. They’ve been so supportive of me in ways I could never have imagined. … I’ve never had a group of people professionally care about me the way they have shown. I’ll never be able to repay them, but I’ll try hard to do so. I’ve never been more grateful. I’ve never been on a better team.”
The anchor went on to reveal that he had agreed to a new “long-term” contract with CNN shortly before his diagnosis.
“I love where I am, I love the position that I’ve been given, and I love who I’m doing it with. Those are all matters of fact for me,” Cuomo continued. “No place has ever been better to me. No place has ever given me the opportunities that [CNN president] Jeff Zucker has.”
He also reiterated some of his previous points about how he feels about his role in the media.
“It is frustrating to do this job in an environment where people are not interested and open,” Cuomo said. “It is hard to practice journalism when people are so intent on believing what they want to believe for political advantage. It makes you question, is it worth the effort? Can I make a difference? Can I personally make a difference? Is the way I’m doing this working?
“I love where I am. I love what I do. That doesn’t mean it isn’t frustrating,” he added. “I don’t think it’s ever mattered more than it has during that administration.”
