CNN defamation trial comes at a rough time for legacy media — and for the struggling network

NEW YORK — At a particularly inopportune time for legacy media and CNN, the news outlet is on trial in Florida this week, accused of defaming a Navy veteran involved in rescuing endangered Afghans from that country when the U.S. ended its involvement there in 2021. Said Jane Kirtley, director of the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and the Law at the University of Minnesota: “Everybody in the news media is on trial in this case.” Actual defamation trials are rare in this country Defamation trials are actually rare in the United States, in part because strong constitutional protections for the press make proving libel difficult. Yet Young’s picture was shown as part of CNN story that talked about a “black market” where Afghans were charged $10,000 or more to get family members out of danger. The plaintiff says the story’s reference to ‘black market’ damaged him To Young, the “black market” label implied some sort of criminality, and he did nothing illegal. CNN said in court papers that Young’s case amounts to “defamation by implication,” and that he hadn’t actually been accused of nefarious acts.