A CNN employee has been caught describing the network's tactics as 'propaganda' in hidden camera footage released by Project Veritas.
CNN technical director Charlie Chester was caught in the embarrassing footage after a woman working with the conservative watchdog group spotted him on Tinder, where he listed his employer, Mediaite reported.
'Look what we did, we got Trump out. I am 100 percent going to say it, and I 100 percent believe that if it wasn't for CNN, I don't know that Trump would have got voted out,' Chester said in the video. 'I came to CNN because I wanted to be a part of that.'
'Like our focus was to get Trump out of office, right? Without saying it, that's what it was, right? So, our next thing is going to be climate change awareness,' Chester said in another clip.
CNN technical director Charlie Chester was caught in the embarrassing footage after a woman working with the conservative group Project Veritas found him on Tinder
Chester and the woman went on a total of five dates, before their final rendezvous in a coffee shop was interrupted by Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe
As a technical director, Chester operates video editing equipment for the cable network, where he has worked since 2018, according to his now-deleted LinkedIn bio.
It is unlikely that he would have had editorial input at CNN, or participated in the network's daily editorial calls. But Project Veritas argues that he has unique insights on the editorial culture at CNN, in which he would be immersed daily.
Though the video clips of Chester only provide snippets of his remarks, they do provide enough context to make it clear that the general thrust of his comments hasn't been concocted through editing.
A CNN source told Mediaite that Project Veritas found Chester through the dating app Tinder, where he boasted of his work for CNN. A Veritas employee claiming to be a nurse matched with him and met him for several dates.
Chester and the woman went on a total of five dates, before their final rendezvous in a coffee shop was interrupted by Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe, the CNN source said.
The clips released by Project Veritas show Chester describing an openly partisan editorial culture, aimed at boosting Joe Biden and damaging Donald Trump in the 2020 election.
The clips released by Project Veritas show Chester describing an openly partisan editorial culture at CNN, aimed at boosting Joe Biden and damaging Donald Trump
Chester used the term 'propaganda' when describing how the network covered Trump's health compared to Biden's health
Chester used the term 'propaganda' when describing how the network covered Trump's health compared to Biden's health.
'[Trump's] hand was shaking or whatever, I think. We brought in so many medical people to tell a story that was all speculation -- that he was neurologically damaged, and he was losing it. He's unfit to - you know, whatever,' Chester said.
'We were creating a story there that we didn't know anything about. That's what - I think that's propaganda,' he continued.
In another clip, the woman working with Project Veritas, who can't be identified from the video, says: 'I guess I have a confession. I worry about Biden and his health, I guess.'
Chester apparently mishears and responds: 'Your news health?'
'What? No, I said Biden, our president,' she replies.
'Oh, his health,' says Chester.
'I want to take care of him and make sure he's okay,' she continues.
'He is definitely - the whole thing of him running during the entire - like run for the campaign. Showing him jogging is obviously deflection of his age and they're trying to make it like, 'Oh, I'm healthy,' Chester said.
The woman responded: 'Is that what we did? I don't know. Like what do you mean?'
'We would always show shots of him [Biden] jogging and that [he's] healthy, you know, and him in aviator shades. Like you paint him as a young geriatric,' Chester said.
CNN President Jeff Zucker wields the ultimate editorial control at CNN
Conservative activist James O'Keefe founded Project Veritas in 2011
In another clip, Chester said that there is 'fatigue' for stories about the coronavirus pandemic, and that CNN is looking for new stories to 'latch onto'.
'They've already announced in our office that once the public is - will be open to it - we're going to start focusing mainly on climate,' he said.
'Pandemic-like story that we'll beat to death, but that one's got longevity. You know what I mean? Like there's a definitive ending to the pandemic. It'll taper off to a point that it's not a problem anymore. Climate change can take years, so they'll probably be able to milk that quite a bit,' he said.
'So, climate change overload,' the woman responded.
'Be prepared, it's coming. Climate change is going to be the next COVID thing for CNN,' said Chester.
O'Keefe, who founded Project Veritas in 2011, told Mediaite of his group's hidden camera tactics: 'If it is the objective of the press is to deliver the truth to the public, circumstances can arise where undercover techniques are a necessity.'
He also defended the decision to report on a technical director's remarks, saying: 'As a technical director, Charlie Chester is fully involved in the day to day operations of CNN's Newsroom.'
'He is witness to decisions being made, and who they are coming from. He has full access to the culture within the network and explains — on video — how company-wide directives are being implemented.'
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