Chris Cuomo Accused of Sending CNN Co-Worker Lewd Message

Angela Rya, Former CNN contributor and current host of the Native Land Pod, used the debut episode of her podcast to reveal an alleged incident that led to the end of her time with CNN. According to the former contributor, it involved an alleged text from former CNN anchor Chris Cuomo that was lewd, and sexual, and left Rye feeling humiliated.

Rye recounts the details to co-hosts Tiffany Cross and Andrew Gillum, noting that she was a recurring guest on Cuomo’s CNN show until he sent her a text. “It all began on New Year’s Day when I posted a picture of myself looking forward to the New Year in a gold sequin bikini on Instagram. Cuomo screen-shot the image and said, ‘Happy New Year, tinsel crotch,’” she says. “Stunned, I read and re-read the message a dozen times, trying to understand if I somehow brought this on myself… I teared up, like now, and then the tears flowed. I felt like the safest place I had on a show on CNN had been compromised. I ignored it just hoping that it would go away.”

Rye said she ignored Cuomo’s texts for around a week after the initial shock but was also fearful to speak up. “I felt that if I called him out, I was risking everything I was finally starting to build with the network and as someone who is known for being courageous, I cannot begin to tell you I much I felt, and even now feel, like a coward,” she added.

Cuomo would be fired from CNN in 2021 after he was alleged to have helped his brother Andrew Cuomo navigate addressing his sexual harassment allegations, all while interviewing him on the air. He continued to reach out to Rye after his firing, confirming she had messages up to last year she didn’t answer until now.

“I was mad at myself for protecting your image with the Black women I know who loved you and looked forward to hearing your voice… I was mad at myself for shrinking in the face of power when people depend on me to stand up, to speak up,” she said referring to Cuomo. “So no, Chris, I won’t be a guest on your program now or later. Thank you for the platform. It was not worth all of the mental and emotional turmoil.”

Rye’s podcast can be found wherever you listen or watch your favorite shows. Ultimately she believes the text situation led to her exit from CNN, but she is happy to be in a better head space. Cuomo left CNN and landed at NewsNation.