Media top headlines December 15
In media news today, Andrew Cuomo gets ordered to return millions from his pandemic book deal, CNN fires a senior producer charged with inducing minors for sex, and ESPN gets dragged for reviving debunked narrative that Bubba Wallace found a 'noose' in his NASCAR garage
WARNING: SOME DETAILS FROM INDICTMENT MAY BE DISTURBING
The arrest of now-former CNN senior producer John Griffin on child sex crimes stunned colleagues who were blindsided by the "disgusting, disturbing and shocking" charges that could result in life in prison.
Griffin, a senior producer for CNN's long-struggling morning program "New Day," was affectionately referred to as simply "Griff" by colleagues until he was fired on Monday.
"The entire team is shaken," a CNN insider who worked directly with Griffin told Fox News Digital.
CNN fired senior producer John Griffin on Monday. (LinkedIn) (Linked In)
CNN FIRES SENIOR PRODUCER CHARGED WITH INDUCING MINORS FOR SEX
Griffin was respected by rank-and-file colleagues as the type of hard-working, trustworthy producer that could handle any work-related situation, according to the insider. The TV news veteran’s trustworthy speaking voice put peers at ease and even provided a sense of comfort when needed a chaotic industry.
"It makes you wonder," the CNN insider said. "How did I not know? How did anyone not know? Master f---ing manipulator."
The CNN insider got "chills" when reading that Griffin was taken into custody Friday following a federal indictment accusing him of coercing parents to allow their minor daughters to engage in sexual activity in his home.
"This was so disgusting, disturbing and shocking," the CNN insider said. "Truly no one had any idea."
Griffin was charged by a grand jury in Vermont "with three counts of using a facility of interstate commerce to attempt to entice minors to engage in unlawful sexual activity."
CHARGES AGAINST CNN PRODUCER ACCUSED OF INDUCING MINORS FOR SEX REVEAL LEWD DETAILS
Former CNN star Chris Cuomo and now-former CNN senior producer John Griffin were both terminated by the network this month. (John Griffin @JGriffNYC)
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Vermont wrote in a statement that Griffin "sought to persuade parents to allow him to train their daughters to be sexually submissive." The indictment alleges Griffin engaged in unlawful sexual activity with a nine-year-old girl and bragged about "sexually trained girls as young as 7 years old."
Griffin’s attorney declined comment.
"The charges against Mr. Griffin are deeply disturbing. We learned of his arrest Friday afternoon and terminated his employment Monday," a CNN spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
CNN senior producer John Griffin was charged by a grand jury in Vermont Friday "with three counts of using a facility of interstate commerce to attempt to entice minors to engage in unlawful sexual activity." (Twitter)
The federal government intends to seek the forfeiture of Griffin’s house, Tesla, a Mercedes, and other property such as computers and cameras that were used in the commission of the charged offenses, according to the indictment.
The indictment indicates computers, computer storage media, devices, phones, cameras, MicroSD cards, images, and videos were seized back on September 2, 2020.
"Prior to his arrest and indictment, we had no knowledge about the case," a CNN spokesperson told Fox News Digital when asked if the network was aware Griffin's electronics were seized.
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Griffin faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years of imprisonment and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for each count, according to the Department of Justice.