CNN fires Kathy Griffin over Donald Trump beheading picture

Team Udayavani, Jun 1, 2017, 5:00 PM IST

Washington DC (USA): CNN has fired comedienne Kathy Griffin from their annual New Year’s Eve programme, which she co-hosts with anchor Anderson Cooper, after she posed with a photograph showing a bloodied and beheaded US President Donald Trump.

The 56-year-old actress faced a lot of backlash on social media after she shared the picture, which was a part of her photoshoot with famed photographer Tyler Shields, on Twitter.

She later apologised by posting a 31-second video message, where she admitted that she went “too far”.
“I’m just now seeing the reaction on these images… The image is too disturbing. I understand how it offends people, it wasn’t funny, I get it… I am sorry. I went too far. I was wrong,” she said.

But that did not stop the network from terminating Griffin’s decade-long contract. “CNN has terminated our agreement with Kathy Griffin to appear on our New Year’s Eve program,” the CNN Public Relations account tweeted.

Trump also tweeted about the photo early on Wednesday, writing that Griffin “should be ashamed of herself”.

“My children, especially my 11-year-old son Barron, are having a hard time with this. Sick!” he tweeted.