Following his recent interview with a TikToker with Tourettes, Chris Cuomo has been heavily criticized for laughing at TikToker who had an episode in front of him during a recent interview.
As previously reported, Cuomo couldn’t stop laughing while interviewing Baylen Dupree, a TikToker who made an appearance on his NewsNation show to discuss the challenges she faces while experiencing her relentless tics. The conversation took an unfortunate turn when Cuomo couldn’t stop laughing when Dupree experienced intense tics. She cursed at him and had uncontrollable spasms. After the episode stopped, the interview resumed.
Following the interview, critics turned to X (formerly Twitter) to voice their opinions about what happened during the interview. “Chris Cuomo brings on a guest who suffers from Tourettes Syndrome supposedly to raise awareness and show support for her,” one X user wrote. “Then he proceeds to laugh at her tics. Disgusting and despicable.”
Another X user made it clear they were not a fan of Cuomo after that interview. “F— you Chris Cuomo,” they declared. “Even though my Tourettes are non-verbal, this is something we deal with every second of every day. How about I think [you’re] a dope who has faked your whole career? Loser.”
Chris Cuomo Speaks Out About the Tourettes Interview Criticism
PEOPLE reports that after he received backlash online, Chris Cuomo spoke out about the criticism he faced following the interview with Dupree.
“Last night, we did a story,” he explained. “It was a little dicey, people weren’t sure we could do it because there was going to be a lot of cursing, and [executive producer Alexandra Cohen] and I didn’t give a damn.”
In response to not caring about the criticism, Cuomo declared, “Baylen Dupree has gone viral – and for good reason. We love giving a platform for her to fight the stigma of having Tourette syndrome.
Chris Cumo then said that Dupree was welcome to his show whenever she wanted. “I can’t wait to see what she does next,” he added.
Cuomo also pulled up headlines from the DailyMail and Mediaite and pointed both outlets had misrepresented the context of the interview. “No, the kid did not come on my show to curse at me,” he stated. “It’s a tic, it’s not a quote. It’s not intentional.”
Chris Cuomo posted the interview on X and wrote, “Baylen Dupree by popular demand. This is about respecting and laughing with, not at people… Tics from [Tourettes] do not define someone… I love that she is popular and proving that she can do it all! Great things to come!”