CNN and CNN host Abby Phillip are issuing an apology and banning panelist Ryan Girdusky after he told Muslim author Mehdi Hasan, “I hope you beeper doesn’t go off.”
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On Monday evening (October 28), commentator Ryan Girdusky was ushered off of CNN’s ’NewsNight with Abby Phillip’ during a commercial break after he got into a heated debate with guest, Muslim author Mehdi Hasan.
During the broadcast, Ryan James Girdusky, a writer and commentator, argued with Mehdi Hasan over the rhetoric used at Donald Trump’s rally on Sunday evening (October 27) at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Hasan said, “If you don’t want to be called ‘Nazis,’ stop doing, stop saying…,” but he was interrupted by Girdusky, who noted that Hasan was called an “anti-Semite more than anyone at the table.” Hasan quipped, “By you.”
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Girdusky denied the name-calling and Hasan added, “I am in support of the Palestinians, so I am used to it.” Girdusky replied, “I hope your beeper doesn’t go off,” which was a reference to the exploding beepers of Hezbollah members, even though Girdusky previously mentioned Hamas at the table.
After Ryan Girdusky’s “beeper” comment, Muslim author Medhi Hasan then asked CNN host Abby Phillip, “Did your guest just say I should be killed on live TV?” Phillip told Girdusky, “That is completely out of pocket. You know that,” to which he replied, “I apologize.”
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After a commercial break, Phillip apologized to Hasan and noted that Girdusky was removed from the table. She said, “There is a line that was crossed there, and it’s not acceptable to me. It’s not acceptable to us at this network. We want discussion. We want people who disagree with each other to talk to each other. But when you cross the line of a complete lack of civility, that is not going to happen here on this show.”
Phillip added, “It’s a heated time. We’re in the middle of a political season. We are eight days from a presidential election, but we can have conversations about what is happening in this country without resorting to the lowest of the lowest kind of discourse. I want to address that and I want to apologize to the viewers at home because we want to be able to hear each other, we want to be able to talk to each other.”
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CNN also issued an apology, stating that Girdusky would no longer be welcomed back to the network. They wrote, “There is zero room for racism or bigotry at CNN or on our air. We aim to foster thoughtful conversations and debates including between people who profoundly disagree with each other in order to explore important issues and promote mutual understanding. But we will not allow guests to be demeaned or for the line of civility to be crossed.”
Abby Phillip also shared another statement on social media reiterating that CNN released a statement and she also made it a point to explain why Medhi Hasan decided to leave the roundtable after Ryan Girdusky was asked to leave.
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