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New Yorker writer Jeffrey Toobin suspended after reports he exposed himself in Zoom work meeting

Author-commentator Jeffrey Toobin has been suspended by the New Yorker and is stepping away from his job as CNN's senior legal analyst pending what the cable network called a "personal issue." Vice Media reported Monday that Toobin had exposed himself during a Zoom work meeting.

Toobin, also a legal analyst at CNN, asked for time off to deal with what network called 'a personal issue'

Author and commentator Jeffrey Toobin has been suspended by the New Yorker and is stepping away from his job as CNN’s senior legal analyst pending what the cable network called a 'personal issue.' (Evan Agostini/Invision/The Associated Press)

Author-commentator Jeffrey Toobin has been suspended by the New Yorker and is stepping away from his job as CNN's senior legal analyst pending what the cable network is calling a "personal matter." 

Vice Media reported earlier Monday that Toobin had exposed himself during a Zoom meeting with staffers of the New Yorker and WNYC radio.

Toobin told Vice on Monday that he believed he wasn't visible and that he thought he had muted the Zoom video. 

"I made an embarrassingly stupid mistake, believing I was off-camera," he said. "I apologize to my wife, family, friends and co-workers."

In a statement Monday afternoon, the New Yorker said Toobin had been "suspended while we investigate the matter." It declined further comment. 

A CNN spokesperson said in a statement that "Jeff Toobin has asked for some time off while he deals with a personal issue, which we have granted."

The 60-year-old Toobin has been a New Yorker writer for more than 20 years and joined CNN in 2002.

He is the author of several books, most recently True Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Investigation of Donald Trump, published in August.

His other works include The Run of His Life: The People v. O. J. Simpson and The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court.