On Jan. 17, CNN announced that it had settled a defamation case with Navy veteran and security consultant Zachary Young. The trial unfolded in a Florida courthouse during the first two weeks of January and ended with a jury finding the network liable and awarding Young $5 million in damages.
CNN joins Fox News, Newsmax, and ABC News in choosing to settle a high-profile defamation case. Unlike those other networks, though, CNN allowed the trial to proceed before ultimately settling.
Here is TVNewser’s breakdown of the closely watched trial.
Why did Young take CNN to court?
In August 2021, the United States military pulled out of Afghanistan after a nearly two-decade stay in that country. Amidst the chaos of the withdrawal, Afghan locals who had assisted U.S. troops were seeking a way out of the country, fearing prosecution from the Taliban.
On Nov. 11, 2021, CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper featured a report from Alex Marquardt that revealed how certain American contractors were charging Afghan nationals as much as $10,000 in fees for safe passage to other nations. Young’s face was shown during the report above a lower third that detailed the exorbitant costs of the “black market” that existed within that country during that period. He was the only private contractor named in CNN’s piece.
But Young claimed his business never took payments from individuals in Afghanistan. Instead, he worked with sponsorships from prominent corporate clients, including Audible and Bloomberg. The online version of CNN’s story notably did not indirectly or directly tie Young to the smuggling black market.
After the story aired, Young and his legal team threatened CNN with legal action if the network did not offer a correction. Although CNN made an on-air apology to Young in March 2022, that was deemed insufficient, and a lawsuit was filed that September.
What happened during the trial?
The trial began on Jan. 6 in a Panama City, FL, courtroom presided over by Judge William Henry of the 14th Judicial Circuit.
In his opening statement, CNN’s lead attorney, David Axelrod—no relation to the on-air analyst—described the network’s reporting as “tough, fair, and accurate.”
But Kyle Roche, one of Young’s attorneys, countered in his opening statement, saying: “Overnight, [Young] went from patriot to criminal, and his career as a private intelligence and security consultant has not recovered. CNN’s reckless journalism stole Zach’s income and reputation.”
Vel Freedman, Young’s other attorney, added that CNN willfully damaged his client, costing him millions of dollars and causing irreparable personal harm.