CNN sparked outrage after it aired a two-hour documentary about the late singer Luther Vandross instead of providing continuous coverage of the aftermath of the New Year’s Eve terrorist attack in New Orleans that happened hours earlier.
“The biggest act of terrorism on American soil in almost a decade and @CNN in primetime is airing a 2 hour documentary on Luther Vandross,” Wall Street Journal editor at large Gerard Baker wrote on his X social media account.
Baker added three clown emojis to emphasize the point.
Tom Sileo, an author and former copy editor at CNN, said his former network’s decision not to air the documentary was “insane.”
“Such disrespect for the victims and their families,” Sileo wrote on X, adding that he “can’t believe I worked there, but when I did, at least we cared about the news.”
In a later post, Sileo acknowledged that New York City-born Vandross “was awesome” and that he “deserves to be honored — just not on CNN during a national crisis.”
Adam Loewy, an attorney based in Austin, Texas, wrote on X: “CNN is currently showing a 2 hour documentary on Luther Vandross. Guess there’s no news to cover today.”
CNN declined to comment.
In November, CNN announced that it would air “Luther: Never Too Much” on New Year’s Day at 8:00 PM ET. The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.
At least 15 people were killed and 30 others injured when a truck driver plowed his vehicle into a crowd of revelers on Bourbon Street sometime after midnight on January 1.
After the vehicle stopped, the driver got out of the truck and opened fire on responding officers, New Orleans police said. The driver was shot dead by police during the exchange of gunfire.
The FBI is investigating the incident as an act of terrorism.
President Joe Biden said the New Orleans shooter had posted videos on social media showing he was inspired by the Islamic State group.
Biden said the man had expressed a “desire to kill.”
The truck driver has been identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a former US Army veteran who served as an information technology specialist.
By postal wire
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