The Washington Post blasted CNN for keeping former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe on its payroll as a contributor amid the recent findings of abuse from Justice Department Inspector General E. Michael Horowitz.

In the latest of a series evaluating the media's handling of the infamous dossier from British ex-spy Christopher Steele, Post media critic Erik Wemple took aim at the anti-Trump network after Horowitz revealed 17 significant errors or omissions in the FBI's handling of the highly controversial Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) application into former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.

Wemple pointed to McCabe's recent appearance on CNN's "The Situation Room," where he was pressed about the FISA abuses by his colleague, Wolf Blitzer.

"How did CNN nail this riveting interview with a former FBI official at the center of the Horowitz report? Well, as CNN disclosed at the top of the interview, McCabe is a CNN contributor," Wemple wrote. "Meaning, the network essentially paid for the exclusive."

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The Washington Post's media critic hammered CNN for keeping former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, pictured here, on its payroll. (REUTERS/Aaron P. Bernstein, Montage)

The Post critic then noted that CNN had hired McCabe just days before Horowitz concluded that McCabe "lacked candor" to investigators, which Wemple acknowledged was the "bureaucratic term for lying." Wemple also noted, "the possibility of an indictment continues to hang over" the CNN contributor.

"We’re not arguing here that CNN’s anchors are going easy on McCabe because he’s a colleague — just that the underlying arrangement is offensive, awkward and corrupting," Wemple continued.

He explained the "awkward" arrangement between McCabe and CNN, "A career in law enforcement prepared McCabe well for glitzy television appearances. He speaks clearly, sits straight up and projects confidence and precision. He’s also skilled at representing his own work: His point about no intentional wrongdoing is correct, but it’s incomplete." He also wrote that Horowitz did "not receive satisfactory explanations" as to why the FISA abuses occurred.

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"It would be one thing if this were the end of McCabe’s dual role as a newsmaker and a CNN contributor. But it’s not," Wemple wrote. "The investigation by Durham into the same set of official actions will eventually conclude with a bang or a whimper- and McCabe’s conduct will be a matter of public concern."

He added, "What should CNN do? Send McCabe interview requests, not paychecks."