Scott Jennings has become so much a part of CNN in recent months, one can argue, that he has become almost as familiar as anchors like Anderson Cooper and Jake Tapper. Even so, he doesn’t have to follow the same rules they do.
CNN says Jennings was well within his rights on Tuesday when he made a brief appearance at a rally-like event held in Michigan by President Donald Trump. In journalism circles, such stuff — curling up to an elected official and offering signs of support — is widely viewed as anathema. “Look at these farms,” Jennings said on stage. “I’ve got to get a farm in Michigan — because when you own as many libs as I do, you gotta get a place to put them all.” He later added on social media that he “got caught up in the moment,” and added a few well-placed emojis.
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Funny stuff, no doubt. Perhaps Jennings should go out on a comedy tour with Amber Ruffin, the liberal comic — and a presence on CNN’s “Have I Got News For You” — whose scheduled appearance at last week’s White House Correspondents Dinner was scotched after organizers felt pressure over pointed remarks she made about members of the Trump administration. But CNN isn’t supposed to be a place where one can work for laughs, Saturday-night repeats of Bill Maher’s “Real Time” aside.
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CNN appears to welcome Jennings’ rally appearance, which no doubt generated a new cycle of publicity for the commentator and the outlet where many of his musings are first heard. “CNN’s diverse roster of contributors provide their opinions, expert analysis, and unique perspectives to the network’s on-air coverage of a wide variety of topics,” the network said in a statement. “CNN’s Political Commentators are not full-time employees or journalists for the network and therefore may participate in political activities including fundraising, public speaking, and advocacy work.”
Indeed, others have availed themselves of similar freedoms. CNN didn’t stop contributor Ana Navarro last year from hosting a night of the Democratic National Convention. Nor did ABC News, which employs Navarro as a contributor on “The View.”
News outlets say they can only do so much about the activities of the outside analysts they curate for audiences — even if such operatives often help them strike a connection with core viewers. In 2020, for example, Lisa Ling, then the host of one of CNN’s original series, made appearances in an eight-part promotional video series on behalf of Johnson & Johnson, the pharmaceutical giant. CNN at the time was limited in its ability to govern the host’s activities outside the scope of her work for the outlet, because she was not a full-time member of its news staff. Ling joined CBS News as a contributor in May of 2023.
The reality is the news outlets could enforce a harder set of rules, if they wanted. Trying to maintain objectivity and journalistic independence is hard enough without giving contributors the freedom to break with simple realities. As big media companies have demonstrated time and again, the business is more important than any single anchor, correspondent, or analyst. If Jennings likes the money CNN is paying him and the platform it gives for his views and personal brand, he’d no doubt find a way to avoid such alliances if instructed to do so.
Of course, Scott Jennings isn’t the first of CNN’s long-running parade of conservative opinionators to defy various norms. Over the years, the news outlet with a brand that relies most heavily on independent bona fides has run through a number of characters who exhibited questionable behaviors. In 2018, CNN parted ways with Paris Dennard, a strong defender of Trump decisions, after The Washington Post reported Dennard had been fired from a job at Arizona State University for what the paper called “inappropriate incidents” involving two women there. Jason Miller, a longtime Trump communications strategist, left a role at CNN in 2018 after allegations surfaced of his behavior toward a woman he impregnated. Ed Martin, a former Missouri Republican Party chairman who also hosted a radio show, offered outspoken pro-Trump commentary on CNN for several months before parting ways after describing some African-American members of a CNN panel in which he was included as “black racists.” In 2025, Martin serves as the interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. And of course, CNN cut ties in 2017 with one of its most polarizing and well-known Trump backers, Jeffrey Lord, after he used the phrase “Sieg heil!” on the social platform then known as Twitter.
These flamethrowers serve a purpose. CNN’s brand is deeply rooted in staying away from partisan presentation. That stance has been questioned more regularly since Trump’s first election in 2016, after CNN devoted many hours of programming to examining the machinations of the Trump White House along with heated question-and-answer sessions with Trump officials. And while the network’s Trump defenders may sometimes come across like professional-wrestling villains, ready to say anything just to spark viewer outrage, having them on screen regularly helps CNN maintain its down-the-middle positioning.
Until, of course, it doesn’t.
Fox News Channel, which in recent months has seen a handful of hosts defect from its programming schedule to work for the Trump administration, has navigated similar issues. The Fox Corp. network has long had to parry with Sean Hannity, one of its most popular personalities, who on occasion has participated in political events. Hannity in 2016 appeared in a promotional video for the Trump campaign, but Fox News at the time issued a statement saying that executives had not been aware of it, and noting he would not appear in any more through the remainder of the election. In 2010, Fox News ordered him not to broadcast his program as part of a Tea Party rally originating from Cincinnati. In April of 2018, it was revealed Hannity had tapped former Trump attorney Michael Cohen for legal advice even though he routinely offered opinion on both the President and news events involving Cohen. “Michael Cohen has never represented me in any matter,” Hannity said at the time. “I never retained him, received an invoice, or paid legal fees. I have occasionally had brief discussions with him about legal questions about which I wanted his input and perspective.”
Some news organizations have reprimanded prominent on-air personalities with not-so-subtle partisan leanings in more public fashion. In 2010, MSNBC suspended primetime host Keith Olbermann for making donations to political candidates without getting approval from superiors, a violation of company policy at the time. The NBCUniversal-owned network suspended morning host Joe Scarborough that same year for two days without pay after learning the former U.S. Congressman had made eight campaign donations to Florida political candidates.
In other cases, news outlets have not come down on their anchors. ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos was criticized in 2015 when it was revealed he had made donations totaling $75,000 to the Clinton Foundation. The Disney network did not mete out any sort of punishment. Still, the contribution was widely viewed internally as a gaffe and has not served the anchor well over his longer tenure at ABC.
Mainstream outlets shouldn’t be so cavalier about maintaining their credibility. Pew Research found last year that about 20% of Americans regularly get news from influencers via social-media sites including X, Instagram and YouTube. Among adults under 30, that percentage rose to 37%.
It’s easy to let Scott Jennings do something that undermines CNN’s central proposition and then let the chips fall as they may. It’s harder to win over new viewers who think they can find a more reliable news source from any number of competing outlets.
