Lewandowski Hired By CNN

Media job leads to questions.

6.24.2016

Corey Lewandowski wasn't unemployed for long. On Monday he was fired as Donald Trump's campaign manager and on Thursday he was making his first appearance on CNN. The cable channel's media reporter Brian Stelter reported on the hiring at his own company, including the fact that not all are happy about the move:

For CNN executives, the hiring was a coup. Lewandowski brings first-hand experience running a historic presidential campaign.

But his hiring was also highly controversial, even within the newsroom, in part because he has a reputation for being hostile toward journalists.

There are also swirling questions about whether Lewandowski is still bound to Trump somehow.

Stelter reports that Lewandowski signed a non-disclosure agreement that limits what he can say about the inner workings of the Trump campaign and possibly, and even controversially, a non-disparagement clause within that agreement:

On Thursday night, in his first appearance as a CNN commentator, anchor Erin Burnett asked about the existence of such a clause, and Lewandowski declined to answer directly.

He said, "I'm a guy who calls balls and strikes. I'm going to tell it like it is... There is nothing that's going to stop me from telling the truth, in my opinion."

Lewandowski remains loyal to Trump, even after being fired, and on Thursday he said, "Trump is the only person who's going to save this country for my children."

CNN isn't the only network that spoke with Lewandowski about a job -- MSNBC confirmed that they had discussions with Trump's former right-hand man but did not make him an offer. The move is in keeping with steps taken by CNN Worldwide President Jeff Zucker to go after the audience currently held by Fox News.

In a story by the Washington Post earlier this year, Zucker is quoted as saying that CNN had been a "little too Liberal" and was seeking to add other voices. The moves appear to have been working, with CNN moving up in the ratings when compared to Fox.