CNN brings scandal-plagued Jeffrey Toobin back into the fold following abrupt exit under previous regime

 CNN is rolling out the red carpet for its former scandal-plagued legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin, who was abruptly ousted from the network in 2022 under the previous corporate ruling.

Toobin, known for his embarrassing 2020 masturbation snafu in recent years, has been around since the beginning of the year to provide commentary on a variety of legal hot topics, such as the ongoing impeachment of former President Trump, special counsel Robert Hur's report on President Biden, Has appeared on CNN a dozen times. And the recent Supreme Court's unanimous decision to strike down Colorado's Trump ballot ban.

According to the Grabian transcript, he has appeared most frequently on "Anderson Cooper 360", and has made five appearances on that program since the beginning of February. He has also appeared on CNN programs such as "Laura Coates Live," "The Source with Katelyn Collins," "CNN Newsnight" and "CNN This Morning." But rather than being referred to by his previous title as CNN chief legal analyst, he is often introduced as a "former federal prosecutor."

Fox News Digital has learned that he is only a "guest" at this time and has not been hired back in an official capacity.

Toobin, who first joined CNN in 2002, was one of the network's well-known pundits when he was caught masturbating during a Zoom meeting with his New Yorker colleagues in October 2020.

The prestigious magazine fired Toobin for this action, but CNN kept him on its board and gave him an extended leave of absence, while the network was still controlled by former president Jeff Zucker.

When Toobin returned from a months-long hiatus in June 2021, she sat down with CNN's Alisyn Camerota to discuss the scandal and her time away from the public eye in an uncomfortable interview.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Camerota asked Tobin.

"Well, obviously, I wasn't thinking very well or very much, and it was something that was incomprehensible to me. I think one thing - I wouldn't say that in my defense at all, because actually my There's nothing defensive. I didn't think I was on a call. I didn't think other people could see me," Tobin said.

He added, "I thought I had turned off the Zoom call. Now, that's not a defense. It was extremely stupid and indefensible. But I mean, that's part of the story." "And you know, I spent the latter seven months of my life, miserable months, I can certainly admit, trying to become a better person."

CNN's Jeffrey Toobin announces he is leaving the network: 'I have decided that, after 20 years, I am leaving the network'

CNN faced widespread ridicule for this bizarre situation, yet everything was business as usual for Toobin, who appeared regularly on the network for the next 14 months as its chief legal analyst.

This all changed in August 2022 when Toobin announced that he had "decided" to leave CNN. However, many believed that he was not really given a choice, considering Zucker's replacement, Chris Leach, was attempting to "reduce the spectacle" and restore the network's credibility. Licht himself was fired, and replaced by current CNN boss Mark Thompson, becoming the network's third non-interim leader in less than two years.

CNN criticized for dominating SCOTUS coverage after Jeffrey Toobin pressured mistress to have an abortion

CNN invited Toobin on-air at least three times to promote a book in 2023 before he began appearing as regularly as he has in recent weeks. Ironically, Camerota is now the one who is largely absent from CNN viewers since he was removed from the network's live broadcasts last year and reassigned to doing pre-recorded segments and specials, Recently she appeared on CNN's weekend program "The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper." ,

Outkick's Mary Kathryn Ham, a former CNN contributor who has said she was punished for tweeting about Toobin's scandal, joked about Toobin's CNN resurgence on Tuesday's installment of the "Ruthless" podcast .

He said, "Who bet before me about getting Toobin back on the air? I wish I had bet on it."