U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young’s high-stakes defamation lawsuit against CNN continued Wednesday when a judge heard several motions for summary judgment.
Young claims CNN defamed him and his security consulting firm, Nemex Enterprises Inc., by implying that they illegally profited from helping people flee Afghanistan while the Biden administration was withdrawing troops from the country in 2021. Young believes CNN “destroyed his reputation and business through branding. He is an illegal profiteer who exploited desperate Afghans during CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper” segment on November 11, 2021.
Judge William S. Henry ruled that Young “did not act unlawfully or criminally,” despite what the network previously reported on the air. Judge Henry also said CNN’s citing Sharia law to defend claims that Young acted unlawfully was “a bridge too far.” As a result, the jury will be instructed to assume that Young did nothing to break the law.
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Plaintiff Zachary Young’s photo was aired by CNN during the segment in question. (CNN/Screenshot)
During a several-hour hearing Wednesday, Judge Henry heard other arguments related to the remaining motion for summary judgment. CNN’s legal team again cited the Taliban’s Sharia law to imply that Young operated in the “black market.” When a Navy veteran tried to help the women escape, it was because the ‘cruel regime’ restricted their movement.
CNN’s legal team repeatedly said they were simply “journalists committing journalism,” and the two sides argued over whether Young was a public figure and a variety of other issues.
During the marathon hearing, CNN spent considerable time arguing that punitive damages should not be discussed. Young’s attorney, Vel Freedman, urged the court to reveal that Young never accepted money from an Afghan citizen.
“CNN can’t present any evidence… There can’t be any evidence because it didn’t happen,” Freedman told the judge.
CNN’s lawyers argued that the segment made it clear that sponsors were needed to cover costs, despite an on-screen chirping declaring that Afghans “face a black market, exorbitant fees.”
Judge Young said he would make a ruling on both sides “soon”.
A defamation lawsuit against CNN could expose the company’s financial secrets as courts attempt to expose its net worth.
The CNN segment at the center of the lawsuit, which was shared on social media and also resurfaced on CNN’s website, shows Tapper telling viewers that CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt “found that Afghans trying to get out of Afghanistan face a black market full of promises.” “It started by saying, , requires enormous costs and does not guarantee safety or success.”
Tapper was thrown at Marquardt, who said “desperate Afghans are being exploited” and must pay “exorbitant and often impossible sums” to flee the country. Marquardt then singled out Young, displayed a picture of his face on the screen and told him his company was demanding $75,000 to transport a passenger vehicle to Pakistan or $14,500 per person to get it to the United Arab Emirates.
“It’s a price that’s out of reach for most Afghans,” Marquardt told viewers.
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CNN’s Jake Tapper is embroiled in a lawsuit over a 2021 article centered on the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. (Photo by Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images)
No other people or companies were mentioned by name other than Young, who claimed CNN used terms like “black market,” “exploitation” and “exorbitant” to inaccurately portray him as a bad actor preying on desperate people.
This part was played out in court on Wednesday.
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Internal communications between CNN employees revealed during the discovery process show that editors had concerns about the segment but aired it anyway. Other internal communications showed CNN staffers used profanity and derogatory language when discussing Young privately.
The civil trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 6 before Judge Henry in Bay County Circuit Court in Florida.
