CNN fires newscaster Sanchez

NEW YORK – CNN fired newscaster Rick Sanchez on Friday, a day after he called “The Daily Show’s” Jon Stewart a “bigot” and suggested Jews run CNN and “all the other” networks.

The host of “Rick’s List” made the comments Thursday during an interview on the satellite radio show “Stand Up! With Pete Dominick,” where Sanchez complained that Stewart was prejudiced against those who disagree with his “white liberal establishment point of view” and scoffed at the idea that Jews were “an oppressed minority.”

“We thank Rick for his years of service,” CNN said in a statement Friday. “And we wish him well.”

CNN representatives declined to comment further.

This isn’t the first time in Sanchez’s four years at CNN that his comments have led to controversy or provoked mocking. He once called President Barack Obama a “cotton-picking president,” attributed unconfirmed quotes to Rush Limbaugh and misidentified the Galapagos Islands as Hawaii.

The remarks came as Sanchez, who is Cuban American, was explaining how racism and prejudice had stunted his career.

CNN has not yet named a replacement for Sanchez.