The mainstream media is on life support. This may be the nail in the coffin.
And now CNN is going under after being accused of one despicable crime.
CNN is under fire ahead of a crucial defamation trial, accused of misleading the court over financial documents tied to its net worth.
U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young has filed a lawsuit against CNN, alleging that the network defamed his security consulting company, Nemex Enterprises Inc., during a 2021 segment on Jake Tapper’s program, The Lead. Young claims the report falsely implied his company exploited the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan to profit illegally, stating it “destroyed his reputation and business.”
In September, Florida Judge William Henry ordered CNN to comply with a subpoena and provide additional financial documents presented to its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). However, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital, CNN failed to produce the promised information.
“Plaintiffs learned that CNN never intended to produce documents showing assets and liabilities (because they don’t exist),” the documents stated.
They further revealed that CNN and WBD not only failed to provide these critical records but also neglected to offer any details about CNN’s stated net worth.
“CNN’s corporate representative did not provide any information about net worth at all, even though net worth was one of the noticed topics—indeed the main topic,” the filing alleges.
The underlying reason, according to the documents, is that CNN’s financial condition is so intertwined with its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, that it cannot be separated.
Young’s attorneys are now asking the court to use Warner Bros. Discovery’s financial statements to assess punitive damages. They are also seeking to block CNN from presenting any evidence or arguments based on its own net worth.
The civil trial is scheduled to begin on January 6, 2025, before Judge Henry in the Circuit Court for Bay County, Florida.
Fox News Digital has reached out to CNN and Warner Bros. Discovery for comment on the matter.
The defamation case centers on a CNN segment shared widely on social media and republished on the network’s website.
In the piece, Tapper introduced a report by CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt, who claimed “desperate Afghans are being exploited” and described a “black market full of promises, demands of exorbitant fees, and no guarantee of safety or success.”
Marquardt highlighted Young’s company, putting his photo onscreen and alleging it charged $75,000 to transport a vehicle of passengers, with individual costs reaching $14,500 per person to travel from Pakistan to the United Arab Emirates. “Prices well beyond the reach of most Afghans,” Marquardt emphasized.
Earlier this year, the First District Court of Appeal for the State of Florida ruled that Young had provided enough evidence to move forward with a trial. The court cited internal CNN communications that Young presented, which raised questions about the story’s accuracy.
Young’s evidence included CNN messages describing the report as “a mess,” “incomplete,” “80% emotion, 20% obscured fact,” and “full of holes like Swiss cheese.”
Despite these concerns, CNN broadcast the segment anyway, the judges noted.
With allegations of bias, factual inaccuracies, and now financial misrepresentation, CNN faces mounting scrutiny as the trial date approaches.
Stay tuned to The Federalist Wire.
