Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

‘It’s Absurd’: Bill O’Reilly, Chris Cuomo Joust Over Anonymous Sources After CNN’s Iran Nuclear Sites Report

Screenshot/Rumble/NewsNation

Former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly and NewsNation host Chris Cuomo sparred on Wednesday over the use of anonymous sources after CNN used them to report that America’s Saturday bombings probably only delayed Iran’s nuclear program by a few months.

CNN cited seven unnamed individuals in a Wednesday report stating that an early U.S. intelligence assessment found the bombings failed to obliterate crucial elements of Iran’s nuclear program. O’Reilly, on “CUOMO,” criticized CNN’s use of anonymous sources and argued the report was intended to downplay the success of the strikes and hurt President Donald Trump, but Cuomo asserted anonymous sources are important in journalism.

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“CNN used four anonymous sources to try to diminish the bombing raid,” O’Reilly said. “It’s what they do.”

Cuomo expressed agreement with O’Reilly’s first statement.

“But even worse was the news outlets that picked it up as fact. So anonymous sources are easy. You can get anybody to say anything. But when I read the article. I said, how do these anonymous sources know? There’s nobody on the ground there,” O’Reilly continued. “There’s nobody who went under the mountain to see. The Iranians can’t even do that because the mountain may collapse on them. There’s absolutely no primary source reporting on the damage that the American planes caused. None. So you got four anonymous people saying, ‘Well, I might have heard this, I might have heard that.'”

“It’s absurd. No competent journalistic editor would have printed that article, but since CNN is in business to make Trump look bad, as you said, every moment of every day, they throw it out there,” he said. “But I think we all know that the journalism industry in America and the world is at the lowest point in the history of that industry.”

Cuomo seemed to again agree with O’Reilly, saying he believes CNN is endeavoring to “compete” with podcasters and those who “sell hysteria for profit.” However, he disagreed with his argument about anonymous sources.

“The only thing I disagree with you on is — and of course Trump asked for it by saying everything was obliterated. So he asks for the criticism, because he doesn’t know that either. But anonymous sources matter, Bill,” Cuomo said. “If it weren’t for anonymous sources in your career and mine, very often, you wouldn’t know anything about what’s happening in the halls of power, because people aren’t going to put their name to things because they get fired. So anonymous sources have their place. You just got to get it right.”

O’Reilly responded that he does not use anonymous sources and agreed with Cuomo about podcasters, but not CNN.

“I don’t do a podcast. I do a broadcast. And you’re absolutely right — the podcasters couldn’t care less about what’s true and what it isn’t. They just want people to watch, and they want attention,” he said. “And that’s what they do. And it’s a huge industry. But I disagree with you about CNN. CNN knows better — they’re so desperate to try to get some kind of surge of people to watch that they’ll violate every journalistic —”

Cuomo interrupted O’Reilly to note he disagreed with his opinion of CNN despite the outlet firing him.

“I think it’s a great place. But when they’re wrong, they’re wrong. When they do things they shouldn’t, they shouldn’t,” he said. I don’t blame the whole place. You got to look at the specific platform.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt criticized the validity of the report along with its use of anonymous sources in a statement to CNN.

“This alleged assessment is flat-out wrong and was classified as ‘top secret’ but was still leaked to CNN by an anonymous, low-level loser in the intelligence community,” Leavitt said. “The leaking of this alleged assessment is a clear attempt to demean President Trump, and discredit the brave fighter pilots who conducted a perfectly executed mission to obliterate Iran’s nuclear program. Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000 pound bombs perfectly on their targets: total obliteration.”

Leavitt also warned on “America Reports” Wednesday that the FBI was investigating the leak to CNN.