CNN has decided to impose stricter publishing rules for Russia-focused online stories after the network deleted a story, and then issued a retraction on Friday night. This is according to an email obtained by BuzzFeed.
The email went out on Saturday morning from Rich Barbieri, executive editor of CNNMoney, stating “No one should publish any content involving Russia without coming to me and Jason [Farkas],” a CNN vice president. “This applied to social, video, editorial, and MoneyStream. No exceptions. I will lay out a workflow Monday.”
In wake of story retraction, CNNMoney exec editor sends memo to staff mandating all “Russia-related content” must be cleared by him or VP pic.twitter.com/2Y6QMZj1h5
— Jon Passantino (@passantino) June 25, 2017
According to BuzzFeed, the deleted and retracted story, written by Thomas Frank of CNN’s investigative unit, claimed Senate investigators were looking into a Russian investment fund whose chief exec met with a member of Pres. Trump’s transition team, Anthony Scaramucci. The story was published Thursday and only cited a single, anonymous source who claimed that the Senate Intel Committee was looking into a “$10-billion Russian investment fund whose chief executive met with a member of President Donald Trump’s transition team four days before Trump’s inauguration.”
The story was replaced by an editor’s note.
An editor’s note from CNN https://t.co/5bHxUVnHHt pic.twitter.com/W3IjT5FPN8
— CNN (@CNN) June 24, 2017
Scaramucci forgave the network.
.@CNN did the right thing. Classy move. Apology accepted. Everyone makes mistakes. Moving on. https://t.co/lyVajCKNHx
— Anthony Scaramucci (@Scaramucci) June 24, 2017
This is the second time CNN has had to retract an online story this month. The previous retraction involved a story prior to former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony to the Senate Intel Committee which claimed that during the testimony Comey would dispute Pres. Trump’s claims that he told the president he was not under investigation, based on “anonymous sources.”