Megyn Kelly Torches CNN's New 'Low Rent' Aesthetic for Anderson Cooper and Jake Tapper's Shows: 'They're Cosplaying as Podcasters'
Megyn Kelly mocked the latest changes at CNN.
March 24 2026, Published 1:15 p.m. ET
Megyn Kelly torched CNN for having star anchors mimic the freewheeling style of podcasters like herself as she slammed the network's "low rent" attempt to turn the mainstream media stalwarts into wannabe digital talk shows, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The revamp saw Anderson Cooper roll up his sleeves and sit at a desk with two guests in front of huge microphones, similar to the ones Kelly and other podcasters use. Even more cringeworthy was Jake Tapper doing his show live from his personal office desk.
Megyn Kelly Mocks CNN for Being 'Jealous' of Podcasters' Numbers
Megyn Kelly and Piers Morgan got a good laugh out of CNN's new 'podcaster' aesthetic.
Kelly crowed about the new setups to guest Piers Morgan on her March 23 SiriusXM show, while mocking CNN's "desperate ploy" to save their plummeting ratings.
"It appears they are jealous of your numbers and possibly my own. It's incredible what they are doing. They've decided that if they try to make Jake Tapper and Anderson Cooper and their sets look more like they are podcasters and in digital media, people will start listening to them again," she laughed.
"Jake Tapper literally did his show from his office with his panels squeezed in on his little couch because he says that's where they do their actual journalism," the former Fox News host howled.
CNN Anchors 'Cosplaying as Podcasters'
Jake Tapper went live for the first hour of his CNN show from his office.
Kelly claimed CNN's famous figures were "cosplaying as podcasters," and snickered as she rolled a clip of an embarrassed-looking Tapper trying to explain to his audience why he appeared in the first hour of his show, The Lead, from his cramped, poster-filled office.
Tapper sat behind his tiny, knicknack -strewn desk, as he told viewers, "So, you're probably wondering what's going on. So, it's an experiment. This is my actual desk where I do my actual work, not the desk in the studio."
"And we thought we would bring you into the space where me and my team do our actual journalism and plan the show every day. So, here we are giving it a shot," he continued, seemingly trying to appear enthusiastic about the decision.
Anderson Cooper's 'Toe Curling' New Look
Anderson Cooper displayed a more 'loose' look with rolled up sleeves on his CNN show.
Calling Cooper's new look featuring the top of his shirt unbuttoned with a loosened tie and rolled up sleeves 'toe-curling," Morgan pointed out, "Imitation is the best form of flattery."
"They are trying to look like us, but they don't," he added. "I mean, Anderson Cooper never expresses an opinion worth listening to anyway, but that's why people turn to us."
The British native pointed out why today's viewers watch online media in record numbers: "They know what's happening in the news. They want to know what to think about what's happening in the news. And we tell them, we give them a strident, honest opinion. Take it or leave it. But at least no one is controlling us. We're our own bosses. We say what we believe in the moment."
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Megyn Kelly and Piers Morgan have had TikTok clips from their shows get more than 40 million views.
The Piers Morgan Uncensored host, who formerly worked for CNN after taking over Larry King's old time slot in 2011, pointed out how his show and Kelly's, along with that of other popular YouTube figures such as Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens, are where the new generation goes to get their news.
"I've got four kids from 32 down to 14. None of them watches mainstream television at all. They all watch YouTube," he explained.
Morgan added that the average age of CNN's viewers today is 77, while his and Kelly's are around 45.
The duo then discussed how their heated "tear up" over Bad Bunny's Super Bowl performance was watched by 42 million people in TikTok clips.
"Anderson Cooper can roll his sleeves up and take all his clothes off. He's not going to get numbers like that," Morgan quipped as the pair roared mockingly.
