CNN defends controversial decision to allow Jeffrey Toobin back on air eight months after his Zoom masturbation incident

The Washington Post

Twitter users reacted with disgust to Toobin's return to CNN this afternoon, eight months after he took a leave of absence following his Zoom New Yorker masturbation incident that led to his firing from the magazine. Some wondered why CNN couldn't find other legal analysts to replace Toobin. But one CNN executive defended Toobin's return to The Washington Post, albeit anonymously. “I don’t think that one terrible mistake should define a person or ruin their employment opportunities for life,” the anonymous network executive said, noting that Toobin had already been humiliated and mocked for a “wildly embarrassing” but “unintentional” mistake. The executive said CNN investigated Toobin's incident and that the legal analyst fully cooperated with the probe.