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--:-- Georgia Howe: Welcome to Morning Wire, I'm Georgia Howe.
--:-- John Bickley: And I'm John Bickley, Daily Wire's Editor-in-Chief. It's Thursday, February 3rd.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We have a lot to cover today, so let's get started. CNN President Jeff Zucker has just resigned. We'll get into the details of that story in a minute.
--:-- John Bickley: But first, let's talk about Whoopi Goldberg. She's been suspended from The View for her comments about the Holocaust.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's right. And a new study out of Johns Hopkins University suggests that lockdowns were not effective in stemming mortality from COVID-19. We'll talk to an expert about that study's findings.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. We'll be right back.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We're back. And we're talking about the big story of the day: CNN President Jeff Zucker's resignation. He's been in charge since 2013 and played a key role in shaping their coverage.
--:-- [Audio clip of CNN President Jeff Zucker's resignation letter]
--:-- Georgia Howe: According to Zucker, the details of the relationship came to light during an internal investigation into former CNN host Chris Cuomo.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, on Wednesday, really out of the blue, Zucker issued a company-wide memo saying he had a relationship with his, quote, closest colleague and, quote, was required to disclose it when it began, but didn't. He added, I was wrong. As a result, I am resigning today.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, his resignation letter didn't mention the colleague by name, but CNN admitted the woman in question was Allison Gullist, the network's chief marketing officer and former communications director for New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: She and Zucker had worked together for over 20 years at NBC and CNN. According to a statement she put out, she and Zucker had been, quote, close friends and professional partners, but their relationship, quote, changed during COVID.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So the implication there is that this was a new development, but that's pretty misleading.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Yeah, so tell us about that. There was a lot of controversy here as far as the timeline of this relationship.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, pretty much everyone who's worked with the pair over the last decade say that at best, that's misleading, and at worst, it's a lie to imply that this was something new.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: They say the affair began years ago while the two were both married to other people, it's worth adding.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Former CNN host Soledad O'Brien, for example, tweeted that the affair was, quote, an open secret at the network and that the relationship dates back years.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Roland Martin, another former CNN political analyst, also called the affair an open secret and said the relationship went back before either were even at CNN.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The news also casts new light on a book published last year by Katie Couric. She described how during her time at NBC, Zucker repeatedly pressured her to let Gullis take over as communications head for the Today Show.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Couric implied it was because the two were having an affair and even described how Gullis moved her husband and children into the same apartment building as Zucker right above where he and his then-wife were living.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So it definitely seems like there's a lot more to this story than Zucker or CNN is letting on.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: So big picture, how much of a shock was this?
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, CNN's Brian Stelter claimed employees at the network were, quote, stunned by the news. But there were a lot of conflicting reports throughout the day saying the real shock among employees there was not necessarily that Zucker was leaving, but more of why he was leaving.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: CNN has struggled all year with poor ratings and numerous scandals. So even before this week, there was already some speculation that Zucker might be forced out, but for professional, not personal reasons.
--:-- Georgia Howe: One growing theory is that either CNN was looking for an excuse to push him out and saw this as kind of a perfect opportunity, or that there may have been more serious behavior behind the scenes that hasn't yet gone public, and they're hoping this will help sort of stem the bleeding.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Now, you mentioned some of those earlier scandals. This definitely isn't the first shakeup we've seen at CNN this year.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, definitely. In December, the network fired primetime host Chris Cuomo after it was discovered that he lied about advising his brother during his sexual assault scandal and then tried to use his media contacts to pressure victims.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Then last October, the network suspended chief legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin after he was caught masturbating on a Zoom call for work.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And before that, host Don Lemon was accused of sexual assault in court by a New York bartender.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: And add to that the fact that the network's ratings are down 80% compared to this time last year.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And it's been a pretty brutal year.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Right. That's kind of an understatement.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Cabot, thanks for reporting.
--:-- Cabot Phillips: Anytime.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire's Cabot Phillips. Coming up, Whoopi Goldberg has been suspended from The View.
--:-- [Audio clip of Whoopi Goldberg's comments about the Holocaust]
--:-- Georgia Howe: Whoopi Goldberg has been suspended from The View for her comments about the Holocaust. We'll talk to Daily Wire's entertainment reporter, Megan Basham.
--:-- Megan Basham: So Whoopi Goldberg angered a lot of people on Monday with her comments about the Holocaust. Let's actually play the clip in case our listeners haven't heard it.
--:-- [Audio clip of Whoopi Goldberg's comments about the Holocaust]
--:-- Megan Basham: Well, also, if you're going to do this, then let's be truthful about it, because the Holocaust isn't about race. No, no, it's not about race. No, it's about a different race. But it's it's not about race. It's not about race. What is it about? Because it's about man's inhumanity to man. That's what it's about. But it's about white supremacy. Well, but it's not about race. But these are two white groups of people.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Hearing it again now, it's not surprising that she's in hot water right now, huh?
--:-- Megan Basham: No, no, you know, it's really not surprising at all, especially in this moment where we hear a lot about cancel culture. And we've seen a lot of people lose their jobs over much less.
--:-- Georgia Howe: But I think the bigger issue here is that although she did issue that strong apology statement, that evening she already taped an appearance on Stephen Colbert in which she seemed a little bit flippant about the offense.
--:-- Megan Basham: I going to guess that that probably made the issue a bit worse.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So here's some of that. I feel being black when we talk about race, it's a very different thing to me. But I thought it was a salient discussion because as a black person, I think of race as being something that I can see. So I see you and I know what race you are.
--:-- Megan Basham: So what that essentially means, as you said, John, is that she's been suspended for two weeks.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So do you think she's going to try to just, you know, ride this out, you know, the news cycle and be back in a few weeks?
--:-- Megan Basham: You know, I'm not sure. We've seen a lot of scenarios like this in the past, and they often end up with the host or anchor making an agreement to leave the show. It's just a matter of time.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I'm thinking in particular of Sharon Osbourne when she defended her friend Piers Morgan over charges he was a racist when he criticized Meghan Markle.
--:-- Megan Basham: CBS suspended her, and then they decided to part ways after that.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And then there was that time NBC fired Meghan Kelly for her comments about blackface being acceptable in the context of Halloween costumes.
--:-- Megan Basham: Right. And the fact that she said Santa Claus is white, you may remember that, yeah.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, also, a bit of an interesting connection, I have to say, to the Daily Wire. ABC is owned by Disney.
--:-- Megan Basham: And of course, the company famously fired actress Gina Carano from The Mandalorian in early 2021 over a Holocaust comparison that was arguably much less controversial than Whoopi's statement.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, we followed that very closely.
--:-- Megan Basham: And you would say that consistency would seem to demand that Whoopi would fall under that same sword. But she's a pretty big A-list star. She's possessor of the famed EGOT.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So ABC could feel that they're going to face more backlash from firing her than maybe if they just let the furor die down.
--:-- Megan Basham: Yeah, that makes sense.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Well, I also think a lot of Americans are getting pretty fatigued of deciding who deserves to be canceled or forgiven.
--:-- Megan Basham: Right. Especially when you could just, you know, let people vote with their TV remotes.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yeah, it should be that simple.
--:-- Megan Basham: Thanks for reporting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire entertainment reporter Megan Basham.
--:-- [Audio clip of Dr. Marty McCary]
--:-- Georgia Howe: A new study published on Monday claims that lockdown measures had little or no effect on COVID-19 mortality. Joining us to discuss is Johns Hopkins, Dr. Marty McCary.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: Thanks for having me on.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So there was a study that was just released this week by Johns Hopkins, and it seemed to indicate that lockdowns had either little or no effect on COVID mortality.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: So what they did is they did a meta-analysis of many existing studies and did a mathematical model that looked at the overall mortality from just the lockdown itself and looked at stay-at-home orders.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And what they found is that the result of all these policies resulted in a mortality reduction of two-tenths of 1%.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: Now, what they did not study, and what we have to compare that number to, is the number of deaths from substance abuse, suicide, deferred medical care, and all the other collateral damage that happens from poverty and hopelessness that follows.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So the stay orders had a range.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: So what they did in pooling the studies, they looked at the range. And the stay-at-home orders alone, without lockdowns, resulted in a range of a 10% reduction to a small added harm.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And so what they concluded is that stay-at-home orders may have made a small difference in the beginning, but sustained stay-at-home orders combined with lockdowns really had a very harsh impact on a society.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: And again, they looked at the U.S. and Europe, so it was a very comprehensive analysis.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Looking back over the past two years and comparing different countries, what information is emerging now about which public health interventions were effective?
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: Well, it's very clear that the extreme measures were effective, but they should have been targeted.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So, what you're saying is that we should have focused on protecting those who are vulnerable, rather than shutting down the entire country.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: That's right. And if there's one mistake we've made the entire pandemic, it's that we've used the same blanket policy on every age group in the population, regardless of their comorbidity and in every part of the country.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And that is sort of the fatal flaw of the entire policy.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: We're still seeing it today. That's the irony of this study, is that we are still seeing nine states with indoor mask mandates. We're still seeing kids now under significant restrictions, even though they are the lowest risk population on planet Earth.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Dr. McCary, as always, thanks for coming on.
--:-- Dr. Marty McCary: Good to be with you, Georgia.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Johns Hopkins, Dr. Marty McCary.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Other stories we're tracking this week. After 92 years, the Washington Redskins announced their new team name on Wednesday, the Washington Commanders.
--:-- John Bickley: The team had faced pressure to change the name due to complaints of racism.
--:-- Georgia Howe: However, a 2019 Washington Post poll found that those with Native American heritage were more likely to report being proud of the team's former name, followed by indifferent.
--:-- John Bickley: 3,000 U.S. troops have been deployed to Ukraine as a, quote, deterrent and defensive posture on NATO's eastern flank.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The Pentagon announced Wednesday that 1,000 American troops will be repositioned from Germany to Romania, while another 2,000 are set to be deployed to Europe from the U.S. in the coming days.
--:-- John Bickley: And a winter storm began to affect close to 100 million people on Wednesday as a massive weather event traveled through much of the country.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Thousands of flights are expected to be impacted.
--:-- John Bickley: If you like this episode and are interested in hearing more, subscribe to Morning Wire on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening, and give us a five-star review.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us.
--:-- John Bickley: We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
--:-- Georgia Howe: If you like this podcast, subscribe to our Morning Wire newsletter, available exclusively to Daily Wire members.
--:-- John Bickley: Get the Morning Wire newsletter delivered straight to your inbox when you join at dailywire.com slash subscribe.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Use code MORNINGWIRE to try a Reader's Pass membership and get your first month for only 99 cents.
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