CNN’s “Zero-Tolerance” Policy Against the Unvaccinated Leads Network to Fire Three Employees
Evan James
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CNN has terminated the employment of three individuals who had been coming to the office unvaccinated.
The New York Times first reported the news Thursday, citing a leaked internal memo from CNN president Jeff Zucker.
“In the past week, we have been made aware of three employees who were coming to the office unvaccinated. All three have been terminated,” he wrote. “Let me be clear—we have a zero-tolerance policy on this.”
It is not known who the employees were or what positions they held within the network. The Times reports that CNN had been relying on an honor system instead of requiring proof of inoculation against COVID-19—but that will certainly change rather soon.
“We expect that in the weeks ahead, showing proof of vaccination may become a formal part of the WarnerMedia PassCard process,” Zucker added. “Regardless, our expectations remain in place.”
“You need to be vaccinated to come to the office. And you need to be vaccinated to work in the field, with other employees, regardless of whether you enter an office or not. Period.”
In addition to mandatory vaccinations, CNN employees will continue to maintain flexibility on whether to work from home or come into the office. Zucker wrote in his memo that the September 7 deadline to bring all employees back into the office would be postponed at least one month. All employees working out of CNN offices in Atlanta, Washington, and Los Angeles must wear masks.
Big League Politics recently reported on a CNN segment that prominently featured a 12-year-old girl who had written a letter to her school board calling for a mask mandate:
CNN has given voice to a 12-year-old girl who has asked her local school board to institute a mask mandate.
Lila Hartley is a seventh-grader at Landon Middle School in Jacksonville, Florida. CNN interviewed her and ten-year-old brother Will, who says he double-masks at school because he’s not yet old enough to get vaccinated.
Their father Matt was also interviewed; he too supports a district-wide mask mandate, even though its implementation would violate Governor Ron DeSantis’ executive prohibition against them.
The segment aired on CNN’s flagship morning program “New Day.” It was part of a report on the Duval County School Board’s new requirement that parents complete “opt out procedures” before their children go maskless.
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