A jury in Panama City, Florida, found CNN liable on Jan. 17 for defamation of a Navy veteran and ordered the network to pay $5 million in compensatory damages.
The charge stemmed from a story the cable news network did about Zachary Young, who smuggled people out of Afghanistan during the 2021 U.S. withdrawal.
Young argued that CNN’s report, which accused him of running what the network called a “black market” by smuggling Afghans for $10,000, destroyed his business.
Young argued that the $10,000 fee was not for Afghans, rather for sponsors who could afford to get Afghans out amid the Taliban takeover of the country.
The jury deliberated for more than eight hours. It will next decide whether CNN will pay punitive damages. Young is seeking $1 billion from the network.
The Epoch Times has reached out to CNN for comment.
During the trial, CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt testified that the report “was not a hit piece” as private text messages showed Marquardt criticizing Young.
Following the verdict, David Freedman, Young’s lawyer, said, “I know Zach feels heard in a way that he hasn’t felt for over three years.”
During the two-week trial, CNN said it stands by the report, which it called “tough” though “fair and accurate.”
“Reckless journalism is un-American,” he said in his opening statement. “It’s dangerous, and if media companies engage in theater in the newsroom, Americans will hold them accountable in the courtroom.”
The bar for defamation in the United States is high. Plaintiffs must prove that the defendant’s statement was demonstrably false, that the defendant acted with malice, and that the statement led to reputational damage. Usually, such cases are either thrown out or settled.This is not the first time CNN has been the subject of a defamation suit.
In 2020, the network agreed to pay an unspecified settlement to Nick Sandmann, a high school student who in 2019 was at a demonstration in Washington and was portrayed by CNN as mocking a Native American and being provocative.
