Kathy Griffin fired from CNN over severed-head Trump stunt

CNN fired comedian Kathy Griffin from its annual New Year’s Eve broadcast on Wednesday after she drew strong criticism for posing in photographs holding up the likeness of a bloody, severed head resembling U.S. President Donald Trump, Reuters reported.

The network announced the termination after earlier criticizing the photos as “disgusting and offensive.”

Griffin posted a videotaped apology on Tuesday night amid a public outcry from Republicans and Democrats alike over the images, including condemnation from Trump, Reuters added.

“Kathy Griffin should be ashamed of herself,” Trump wrote. “My children, especially my 11-year-old son, Barron, are having a hard time with this. Sick!”

The U.S. Secret Service, responsible for presidential security, has opened an inquiry into the posting of Griffin posing with the severed-head replica, a spokesman in Los Angeles said when asked whether the agency was looking into the incident as a potential threat on the president’s life, according to Reuters.

“We’re aware of it and we’re investigating it,” the spokesman, George Fernandez, told Reuters. He declined to elaborate.

Griffin, 56, a two-time Emmy-winning performer known for her deliberately provocative brand of humor, has appeared since 2007 as co-host of CNN’s New Year’s Eve broadcast from Times Square in New York with anchor Anderson Cooper, Reuters wrote.