Jury Foreperson in Blockbuster CNN Jake Tapper Defamation Case Reveals She Would Have Awarded Up to $100MILLION in Damages — After Suit Was Settled For $5M
CNN’s attorney told the jury he was left "disappointed" in the verdict.
Feb. 6 2025, Published 3:22 p.m. ET
A juror in the blockbuster CNN Jake Tapper defamation case has revealed she would have awarded up to $100million in damages after the lawsuit was settled for $5million.
RadarOnline.com can report back in January, a Florida jury found the network liable for defaming U.S. Navy veteran and security contractor Zachary Young during a report on Afghan evacuees.
CNN was ordered to pay $5 million for defaming a private security contractor.
After two days of deliberation, the jury responded and ordered CNN to pay $5 million for defaming a private security contractor.
The jury ruled the network must pay the 49-year-old $4million in financial damages and $1million in emotional damages.
After the verdict, David L. Axelrod, CNN’s attorney, told the jury he was left "disappointed" and urged jurors to limit punitive damages, claiming the network is not "unredeemable" - while also claiming the network's worth is on a "subtle decline."
But Young's attorney had a different outlook following the ruling and said his client "feels heard in a way he hasn't for three years."
The jury found CNN liable for defamation and award Young $5million in damages.
Following the bombshell case, Katy Svitenko, the foreperson, opened up about how she would have awarded a much higher amount and explained how the jury was trying to send a message about "fake news."
In an email to Variety, she wrote: "The message the jury wanted to send was to not only CNN but to all media that the general public is fed up with fake news and partial truths. Reporting must be unbiased, true, and complete."
As RadarOnline.com reported, Young, a security contractor who extracted people from Afghanistan, claimed the network destroyed his reputation by implying that he was "illegally profiting" from helping people flee Afghanistan on the "black market" during the military withdrawal from the country in 2021.
In 2022, Young sued CNN in a $1 billion defamation suit after the remarks were made on the show The Lead with Jake Tapper.
The network has been struggling with plummeting ratings.
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According to the lawsuit, during a segment on the show, CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt warned the rescue operations had "no guarantee of safety or success."
Young claimed in the lawsuit that the statements made suggested to viewers his actions were criminal, specifically due to the use of a graphic on screen reading "black market."
The same "black market" banner was also reportedly used when the report was published to the network's website.
According to the veteran, he never accepted any money from residents and only charged corporate sponsors to help rescue evacuees – which isn't what CNN insisted on during the segment.
CNN's legal defense claimed the term "black market" was loosely used to describe the situation in Afghanistan and claimed the statements made during the show segment did not imply the veteran's actions were criminal.
