CNN slammed for airing Luther Vandross documentary after New Orleans terror attack: ‘So disrespectful’

CNN sparked outrage after it aired a two-hour documentary about the late singer Luther Vandross instead of offering continuing coverage of the aftermath of the New Year’s Day terrorist attack in New Orleans that took place hours earlier.

“Biggest act of terrorism on US soil in almost a decade and @CNN in primetime is airing a 2 hour documentary on Luther Vandross,” Wall Street Journal editor-at-large Gerard Baker wrote on his X social media account.

Baker added three clown emojis to emphasize the point.

Tom Sileo, an author and former copy editor at CNN, said the decision by his former network not to postpone the airing of the documentary was “insane.”

“So disrespectful to the victims & their families,” Sileo wrote on X, adding that he “can’t believe I used to work there, but when I did, at least we cared about news.”

In a subsequent post, Sileo acknowledged that the New York City-born Vandross “was awesome” and that he “deserves to be honored — just not on CNN during a national crisis.”

Adam Loewy, an Austin, Texas-based attorney, wrote on X: “CNN is currently running a 2 hour documentary on Luther Vandross. Guess there’s no news to cover today.”

CNN has declined to comment.

In November, CNN announced that it would air “Luther: Never Too Much” on New Year’s Day at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. The film initially premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.

At least 15 people were killed and 30 others were injured when the driver of a pickup truck rammed his vehicle into a crowd of revelers on Bourbon Street sometime after midnight on Jan. 1.

After the vehicle stopped, the driver emerged from the truck and opened fire on responding officers, New Orleans police said. The driver was then fatally shot by police during the exchange of gunfire.

The FBI is investigating the incident as an act of terrorism.

President Joe Biden said the New Orleans attacker had posted video on social media indicating he was inspired by the Islamic State group.

Biden said the man had expressed a “desire to kill.”

The driver of the truck has been identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a former US Army veteran who served as an information technology specialist.

With Post Wires