CNN Journo: Either Cruz’s Camp Stopped Reading My Report Or Knowingly Misled

Chris Moody, the CNN reporter who first reported that Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson was headed to Florida after the Iowa caucus, said Sunday that rival Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX)’s campaign either stopped reading his report or was “misleading intentionally.”

Moody detailed how he reported about Carson’s intentions during a segment on CNN’s “Reliable Sources.” Moody said that his report included that Carson intended to go to Florida after the Iowa caucus where he would take a “short, brief rest.”

The Cruz campaign soon after distributed an email that stated Carson was dropping out of the race and that those intending to caucus for Carson should put their votes behind him instead.

“Ted Cruz’s campaign cherry-picked part of that information, and not only
sent messages to precinct captain on e-mail but also called and said
he’s suspending campaigning — which is something I or no one else at
CNN ever said,” Moody said. “So, either Ted Cruz’s campaign just stopped reading, or — as others have said, it was something that was misleading intentionally.”

CNN host Brian Stelter asked Moody what it was like to have his coverage criticized by both Republican contenders.

“Ted Cruz’s campaign drew that wrong conclusion, ignored the other half
of the sentence basically, and then blamed me for their wrong
conclusion, saying that I had reported what they were telling everyone
else. It all got lost in the speed that is an election night,” Moody said. “Obviously, that’s unfortunate for everyone involved. But again, it was never reported on CNN television, digital, or social media that Ben Carson was dropping out.”