3 CNN journalists resign over retracted story

NEW YORK — The Latest on a retracted CNN story about a supposed investigation in a Donald Trump associated and the head of a Russian investment fund (all times local):

8 p.m.

CNN says it has accepted the resignations of three employees involved in a retracted story about a supposed investigation into a pre-inaugural meeting between an associate of President Donald Trump and the head of a Russian investment fund.

The story was posted Thursday on CNN's website. It was retracted the next night, and CNN apologized to Anthony Scaramucci, the Trump transition team member named in the story.

CNN said the story didn't meet its editorial standards. A network executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss personnel issues, said Monday that story author Thomas Frank resigned. Also losing their jobs are Eric Lichtblau, an assistant managing editor at the organization's Washington bureau, and Lex Harris, head of the investigations unit.

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10:50 a.m.

CNN wasn't saying Monday what led it to retract a story about a supposed investigation into a pre-inaugural meeting between an associate of President Donald Trump and the head of a Russian investment fund.

The story posted Thursday on CNN's website said Senate investigators are looking into the meeting between Anthony Scaramucci, a member of Trump's transition team, and Kirill Dmitriev, whose Russian Direct Investment Fund guides investments by U.S. entities in Russia. Scaramucci, in the story, said he exchanged pleasantries in a restaurant with Dmitriev.

On Friday night, CNN removed the story, saying it did not meet the news organization's standards. CNN apologized to Scaramucci.

It was unclear whether the story by reporter Thomas Frank appeared on any of CNN's television networks.