CNN suspends reporter for passionate pro-refugee tweet
CNN has suspended Elise Labott, a global affairs correspondent at the network, for two weeks following a passionate pro-refugee tweet, a CNN source confirmed to Business Insider.
After the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed legislation on Thursday to stifle the flow of US refugees from Syria and Iraq, Labott slammed the bill.
"House passes bill that could limit Syrian refugees. Statue of Liberty bows head in anguish," she wrote on Twitter.
That tweet prompted immediate backlash from critics who said she shouldn't have been opining on contentious legislation. Unlike some of its competitors, CNN typically strives for a straight-news, nonpartisan approach to its broadcasting.
"CNN correspondent lays bare bias in one easy tweet," The Washington Post's media critic, Erick Wemple, wrote on Twitter.
"I was stunned that Elise Labott, a CNN reporter, would tweet about Statue of Liberty hanging its head after Syrian refugee bill passed," added Howard Kurtz, a media-focused Fox News host. Kurtz further called the tweet "disrespectful."
The issue of Syrian refugees became charged after last week's terror attack in Paris, which left more than 100 people dead and hundreds more injured. A Syrian passport was reportedly found on one of the attackers.
See representatives discussing and voting on the refugee screening process:
Republican leaders widely declared that President Barack Obama's Syrian-refugee plan constitutes a national-security risk. In a stunning blow to Obama, a number of House Democrats voted for the Republican-backed bill on Thursday.
For her part, Labott apologized Thursday night on Twitter.
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