Disgraced CNN chief legal analyst Jeffrey Tobin made a sudden and unannounced return to the cable network on Thursday, & admitted to masturbating during a Zoom call with colleagues from The New Yorker last year.
Tobin, 61, who became the butt of jokes by Late Night Comics after the October incident & was fired a month later by The New Yorker, where he was a staff writer, wrote a segment with CNN anchor Alisin Camerota. I apologize for my actions. who described the incident in which Tobin was "caught masturbating on camera."
"I'm now trying to say how sorry I'm, honestly. Above all, I'm sorry for my wife and my family, but I'm also sorry for the people on the Zoom call. I feel for my ex. Sorry colleagues at The New Yorker. I feel sorry for my current, fortunately, still colleagues at CNN. & I feel sorry for the people who read my work and saw me on CNN, who thought I was better person,” said Tobin, sitting next to Camerota at the CNN anchor desk. "I've a lot to rebuild, but I feel very privileged and very lucky that I'm going to try to do that."
CNN confirmed Tobin's reinstatement as chief legal analyst but did not comment further. The New Yorker declined comment.
Confirming Camerota's description, he added a slight qualm, explaining that he was not aware that he was on camera while masturbating.
"I did not think other people could see me," he said. "I thought I had turned down the Zoom call. Now, it's not a defense. It was so silly & unforgivable."
Tobin said he began apologizing to New York colleagues the same day.
"They were shocked & amazed. I think they realized it was not for them. I think they realized it was something I would immediately regret, as I certainly did," he said. "And that was the day I started apologizing. And that's something I have tried to continue with, both publicly and privately."
Vice first reported the incident in October. At the time, Tobin issued a less detailed statement.
"I made an embarrassingly stupid mistake believing I was off camera. I apologize to my wife, family, friends and coworkers," he told Vice.
CNN's chief legal analyst Jeffrey Tobin was "caught masturbating on camera" in October & later suspended
—@AlisynCamerota: “You were caught masturbating on camera … to quote Jay Leno, ‘What the hell were you thinking?'” @JeffreyToobin says he “wasn’t thinking” and apologizes to his family, those on Zoom call, and CNN colleagues. He says he's working to be a better person. pic.twitter.com/XjH0B3qpMA
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) June 10, 2021
After covering several public figures, including former President Bill Clinton, when she faced allegations of sexual misconduct, Camarrota noted the irony of being implicated in such a scandal. He asked why he had not made a better decision.
"Because I did not have a better judgement. Because I am a flawed person who makes mistakes," Tobin replied. "There is no defense for my conduct. The only issue is what the consequences should be. And The New Yorker made a decision about the consequences. CNN made a different decision, fortunately, for which I'm very grateful." "
Tobin, who found the New Yorker firing "heartbreaking," said the magazine told him the investigation into his 27-year career did not find any other complaints about his behavior. He told Camerota that "there is no (other) surprise about my conduct."
Tobin told The New Yorker that he thought the "punishment was excessive, but that's why they don't ask the offender to be the judge in their case. I am grateful to CNN for backing me up. Others are weighing in on this." Going to see if it was appropriate for them to get rid of me & keep me for CNN."
When Camarota explained how the late-night comedian had a field day with Tobin's guilt, he said, "How about me having two segments on 'Saturday Night Live'?" Suggesting that this was a sore point.
Camarota mentioned how O.J. Simpson, whose murder trial Tobin wrote a book about inspired the Emmy-winning FX miniseries, took a shot at that. He wondered whether such comments would color his legal analysis.
"I really don't think so. My dad used to say, 'You can judge a person by his enemies.' And if my enemy is OJ Simpson, that's fine with me," he said.
Then, they shifted to a discussion of a federal judge's decision banning California assault-weapons.