Oh, you hate to see it...JUST KIDDING.
On Friday, a jury of six in Florida’s 14th Circuit Court in Bay County has found CNN liable for the defamation of Navy veteran Zachary Young and that he was entitled economic and emotional damages, a ruling that proved CNN was not worthy of their moniker “the most trusted name in news.” They also found that CNN’s reporters had demonstrated expressed malice, actual malice, and outrageous behavior, which opened the door for a massive punitive damages judgement.
A jury took eight hours - and one calculator - to decide that CNN had defamed Navy veteran Zachary Young, who had been involved in helping people get the hell out of Afghanistan, as 'profiting' from his assistance by 'preying' on their desperation.'
...Young alleged that CNN smeared him by implying he illegally profited when helping people flee Afghanistan on the "black market" during the Biden administration's military withdrawal from the country in 2021. Young believes CNN "destroyed his reputation and business" by branding him an illegal profiteer" who exploited "desperate Afghans" during a November 11, 2021, segment that first aired on CNN’s "The Lead with Jake Tapper."
You know what's even better about the whole situation?
Jake 'Butter Wouldn't Melt in His Mouth' Tapper is right smack dab in the middle of it.
...Tapper first teased the 2021 segment at the center of the suit by warning CNN viewers of "desperate Afghans still trying to escape the country being preyed on by folks demanding that they pay up big time to get out."
Later in the show, Tapper reminded viewers that the story on "desperate Afghans" being "preyed upon" was up next.
Tapper’s teasers ended up being a key part of the trial, as jurors asked to take another look at them during the deliberation process.
Once the much-hyped segment began, Tapper said Marquardt found "Afghans trying to get out of the country face a black market full of promises, demands of exorbitant fees, and no guarantee of safety or success."
Tapper tossed to Marquardt, who said "desperate Afghans are being exploited" and need to pay "exorbitant, often impossible amounts" to flee the country.
NewsBusters' Nick Fondacaro (his X feed here), who has done a gangbuster job following this case and trial, noted that national security correspondent Alex Marquardt, the author of the report and on-screen with Tapper, was promoted by CNN while the wrangling over the lawsuit raged on.
...Chief national security correspondent Alex Marquardt, who was promoted to that position while the suit was still on going, singled out Young as the face of the people who was “exploit[ing]” “desperate Afghans”:
According to Afghans and activists we've spoken with desperate Afghans are being exploited like that young man, told they can get them or their families out if they pay exorbitant often impossible amounts. One LinkedIn user posted messages with Young, where Young said it would be $75,000 for a car to Pakistan. He told another, it would be 14 and a half thousand per person to get to the United Arab Emirates or Albania for another 4,000. Prices well beyond the reach of most Afghans.
Young’s lead counsel Vel Freedman said in his closing that the Marquardt segment ran on 11 different CNN shows both domestically and on CNN International. And, in addition to Marquardt’s defamatory report, it was accompanied by anchors making their own defamatory statements about Young.
I can only assume the network wasn't terribly worried about the young Navy veteran denting their corporate armor to allow that sort of public pile-on. In fact, that attitude oozes out of the Slack messages, texts, conversations, and correspondence associated with the piece as it was produced and run on CNN.
Discovery proved to be a bear for the network.
...The segment was shared on social media and also repackaged for CNN's website. The Marquardt report was re-aired Nov. 13 on Jim Acosta’s CNN show and multiple times on CNN International.
Every second of the segment was picked apart during the trial, with CNN’s legal team insisting Young was not a major element of the story and the plaintiff’s team suggesting the "black market" implication essentially ruined Young’s career as a defense contractor, where that language was specifically mentioned as grounds for termination in a contract he signed.
Young's legal team obtained damning CNN internal messages through discovery repeatedly showing staffers expressing overt hostility towards the Navy veteran. Among those presented to the jury include one calling him a "shitbag" an "a--hole" one saying he has a "punchable face."
Marquardt's own message telling a colleague "we're gonna nail this Zachary Young mf---er" was often cited throughout the trial.
At one point, CNN senior national security editor Thomas Lumley was grilled in court after internal messages showed he was highly skeptical of the "pretty flawed" report. Lumley was called as a witness after internal messages showed he felt the report was "full of holes like Swiss cheese."
The network did air an apology.
...CNN issued an on-air apology on March 25, 2022, when substitute anchor Pamela Brown was sitting in Tapper’s chair. However, several CNN staffers who took the witness stand said he didn’t feel the apology was necessary and Adam Levine testified that the apology was only issued for legal purposes.
It wasn't sufficient and, at the trial, staffers basically ridiculed it as CYA window dressing.
I'll bet that made an impression.
CNN's lawyers did them no favors during the trial, as even the trial judge blasted away at lead attorney David Axelrod (not that one) in court after one particularly egregious incident too far.
Our own John had a terrific post detailing the numerous missteps and unbelievably embarrassing errors committed by CNN's legal team.
...Judge Henry called for a recess to consider what to do next. When court resumed, the judge told CNN's attorney he owed an apology to the plaintiff.
"I think an apology from you is clearly in order to Mr. Young for the number of times in front of this court, and streamed around the world, that you called Mr. Young a liar," the judge continued...
Judge Henry noted that Axelrod previously implied the document was a "smoking gun" in the case but contradicted himself later to suit his argument.
"Right now, your credibility with me, Mr. Axelrod, is about none," Judge Henry said.
Axelrod apologized but it's clear the judge was pretty upset as you can see in this clip.
"This isn't Kindergarten." Judge is chewing out the parties. "Right now your credibility with me, Mr. Alexrod, is about none." #cnndefamationtrial pic.twitter.com/asQaBki8Dw
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) January 15, 2025
The jury started deliberating last night, and this morning, they asked for a calculator.
As Libby Sternberg was kind enough to email, that's when you knew the jig was up. She also pointed out that CNN brought that on themselves as a witness stand parade of CNN producers and staffers when quizzed about 'Would you run the story now, knowing what you know?' all answered 'Yes.'
It was good to go as far as they were concerned.
The clue to the jury's thinking probably was when they asked for a calculator this a.m.
Compensatory damages are not super high - around $5 mill. My guess is Young might have gotten more in a settlement.
But now the punitive damages phase begins, and CNN kind of did themselves in on this during the first phase of the trial.
During that phase, CNN staffers, one after another, all testified that yes, they stood by the story and would even run it again. Some even admitted to not liking the on-air correction.
This was brilliant lawyering on the plaintiff's side because he used that in his closing -- all those "yes" answers in the trial transcript to those questions -- to show that CNN would do it again if not punished.
...The jury was given the case late yesterday and started deliberating then. This a.m. when court reconvened, the jury asked for several things to be given to them, and one was a calculator. That's when you knew what the verdict would be before it was announced. They were clearly calculating compensatory damages.
And so they were. They toted up damage figures of $4M in economic and $1M in emotional that CNN gets to compensate Mr Young with.
BREAKING: CNN has been found liable for defamation of Navy veteran Zachary Young.
— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) January 17, 2025
They have been ordered to pay $4 million in economic damages and $1 million in emotional damages.
Phase 2 of the trial is happening now for punitive damages. https://t.co/WJVXj4gohK
Punitive damages are Phase 2 and already in session at the Panama City courthouse.
Libby believes CNN will cry poverty in an attempt to minimize the bleeding.
...I think that's ironic - they'll essentially have to argue they're not influential, don't have a wide audience or the revenues from it.
There's definitely a message to be sent and pain to be felt, as the testimony of the CNN employees shows they've learned nothing and would absolutely act in the same manner again without any reservation.
WHAT TO DO, WHAT TO DO
Mr Young's attorneys just threw out a number that might make an impression deep enough to change corporate behavior.
Time out - that's cute.
As poor as CNN is, with all of its 12 viewers, $150M might be close to LIGHTS OUT.
I like it.
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