C-SPAN Places Host Steve Scully on Leave After False Hacking Claims

Public-affairs media outlet C-SPAN said Thursday it had placed host and producer Steve Scully on administrative leave after he falsely suggested his Twitter feed had been hacked as he was preparing to moderate a second presidential debate between President Donald Trump and his Democratic rival, Joe Biden.

“These actions have let down a lot of people, including my colleagues at C-SPAN, where I have worked for the past 30 years, professional colleagues in the media, and the team at the Commission on Presidential Debates,” said Scully in a statement. “I ask for their forgiveness as I try to move forward in a moment of reflection and disappointment in myself.”

The host said he had been “subjected to relentless criticism on social media and in conservative news outlets regarding my role as moderator for the second presidential debate, including attacks aimed directly at my family. This culminated on Thursday, October 8th when I heard President Trump go on national television twice and falsely attack me by name,” in his statement. ” Out of frustration, I sent a brief tweet addressed to Anthony Scaramucci. The next morning when I saw that this tweet had
created a new controversy, I falsely claimed that my Twitter account had been hacked.”

Scully, a veteran of Washington news circles, has been at C-SPAN for three decades.

More to come…