Brian Stelter now says Hunter Biden saga isn't just a 'right-wing media story' anymore
CNN media reporter Brian Stelter dismissed the Hunter Biden laptop story in 2020 as a manufactured scandal and possibly a Russian disinformation operation.
CNN is parting ways with "Reliable Sources" host and media pundit Brian Stelter, with his last show set to air on Sunday.
"CNN will end its ‘Reliable Sources’ program on Sunday, August 21st. As a result Brian Stelter will leave the company. We appreciate his contributions to the network and wish him well as he embarks on new endeavors," a CNN spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement.
Stelter said in a statement to NPR that he was grateful for his time at CNN and the show's examination of the "media, truth and the stories that shape our world." A former New York Times reporter, he joined CNN in 2013 and took over the Sunday media affairs show at that time.
Brian Stelter’s now-canceled show had trouble attracting viewers during the Biden administration. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for WarnerMedia)
Stelter’s exit comes as new CNN CEO Chris Licht has put an emphasis on "news," as opposed to the liberal opinion programming that the network became known for under Jeff Zucker's management, particularly during the Trump administration.
Stelter developed a reputation as a left-wing pundit who spent much of his airtime criticizing conservative media. He was recently called out in a report about an attempt to restore the organization’s nonpartisan approach as the "face of the network's liberal shift" in the eyes of conservatives.
Stelter, one of the mainstream media’s most outspoken critics of former President Donald Trump, will host his final CNN show on Sunday. In what many assumed was an attempt to appease new management, Stelter recently had an apparent epiphany about the severity of the Hunter Biden scandal, which turned out not to be a dismissable "right-wing media story" like the liberal pundit insisted in 2020.
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"Reliable Sources" had issues attracting viewers during the Biden administration. In August, the show is down a staggering 41% among the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults age 25-54 compared to the same month last year. For the year, Stelter’s program shed 26% of its 2021 total audience and 34% among the key demo. 2022 was also the lowest-rated year among the demo for "Reliable Sources" since before Trump took office.
The show's staff was also laid off in the shakeup.
CNN executive vice president Amy Entelis described Stelter as an "impeccable broadcaster" on his way out the door.
"Stelter came to CNN from the New York Times as the nation’s top media reporter. He departs CNN an impeccable broadcaster. We are proud of what Brian and his team accomplished over the years, and we’re confident their impact and influence will long outlive the show," Entelis told Fox News Digital.
Brian Stelter joined CNN in 2013. (Reuters/Andrew Kelly)
Stelter did not immediately respond when asked for additional comment by Fox News Digital.
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Stelter, who has also developed a reputation for defending liberal media outlets at all costs, was known to be close with Zucker, CNN's former president, who was forced out himself earlier this year ahead of a long-planned merger that put CNN under the control of the newly formed Warner Bros. Discovery.
Zucker was replaced by Licht, a longtime TV executive who doesn’t appreciate hyper-partisan punditry and is thought to dislike the idea of CNN personalities criticizing other news organizations.
During his time at CNN, Stelter was regularly mocked by critics as a "hall monitor" and the media’s "janitor," while others referred to him by disparaging nicknames such as "Humpty Dumpty" and "Tater."
CNN’s Oliver Darcy, long seen as Stelter’s sidekick, will remain at the network and lead the "Reliable Sources" newsletter that he previously co-authored with Stelter.
In August, "Reliable Sources" with Brian Stelter is down 41% among the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults age 25-54 compared to the same month last year. (CNN)
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In April, Stelter was visibly uncomfortable when confronted by a college freshman about his network being a "purveyor of disinformation" during a panel discussion at the Disinformation and the Erosion of Democracy conference in Chicago. Stelter has become known for turning a blind eye to many headlines that were far from flattering to his liberal allies in the industry.
Most famously, he completely avoided ABC News' shocking cover-up of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, omitting it from his "top ten media stories" of 2019.
In 2021 alone, Stelter’s media show failed to cover a judge banning MSNBC from the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse; the Washington Post issued a stunning correction on articles involving the Steele dossier; the New York Times being forced to admit the satirical Babylon Bee is not "misinformation"; Don Lemon’s news-making text messages to Jussie Smollett; turmoil surrounding The Lincoln Project; USA Today allowing Stacey Abrams to stealth-edit a column; Joe Rogan's explosive interview with CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta; a false narrative pushed by MSNBC stars about ivermectin overdoses overwhelming Oklahoma hospitals; the New York Times ousting a reporter for failing to disclose a book deal with Michael Phelps; USA Today botching a fact-check that claimed Biden didn’t check his watch during a dignified transfer ceremony; and a variety of other media stories that made liberal news organizations look bad.
Brian Stelter, left, once suggested Michael Avenatti was a serious presidential candidate before the disgraced lawyer's career collapsed in a wave of financial crimes. (CNN)
The media pundit also avoided the Washington Post's major correction to its bombshell January report about a phone call between then-President Trump and a Georgia elections investigator, urging her to "find the fraud" and that she would be a "national hero" if she did, which turned out to be not true. Stelter also skipped Meghan McCain's dramatic exit from ABC News' "The View."
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The news of Stelter’s departure comes days after CNN’s longtime chief legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin announced his exit. Toobin, who was famously engulfed in a mess of a controversy in 2020 when he was caught masturbating during a Zoom meeting, is widely thought to have been forced out by Licht in an effort to restore the network’s once-proud reputation.
Licht previously announced he would "reimagine" CNN’s morning program where current co-host Brianna Keilar has developed a reputation for combative interviews with conservatives. It is unclear if she will be part of the revamped morning program, which is expected to begin this fall.
Fox News’ Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.