Susan Roesgen, who was let go by CNN following comments she made on-air while covering a Tea Party event in Chicago, has landed at New Orleans’ WGNO.
In April 2009, Roesgen, then a correspondent for CNN, described the Tea Party event as “anti-government, anti-CNN since this is highly promoted by the right-wing conservative network Fox.” The video bounced around the internet, drawing the ire of Shepard Smith, Bill O’Reilly, and others.
Now Roesgen is set to co-anchor a new 6 p.m. program that the ABC-affiliate is calling “News with a Twist.” The unconventional show will feature Roesgen and LeBron “LBJ” Joseph, the morning drive-time DJ at New Orleans’ KMEZ-FM, going over the day’s stories in a newly constructed set that evokes a barroom.
The type of on-air commentary that got Roesgen in trouble at CNN will seemingly be encouraged at WGNO, where news director Rick Erbach says the mantra of the new show is “It’s not a newscast.”
The move is a homecoming for Roesgen, who worked as an anchor and reporter for WGNO, as well as New Orleans’ WDSU, before joining CNN.
Here’s a video posted to YouTube of Roesgen’s controversial on-air comments (note: TVSpy doesn’t endorse the view of the YouTube user’s title):