PANAMA CITY, FL – U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young celebrates the “vindication” he received after a jury found CNN had defamed him, concluding the intense two-week trial.
“I’m glad it’s over,” Young said Fox News digital in an interview. “I feel very, very, very good.”
After more than eight hours of deliberation, the six-person jury ruled that Young would be awarded $4 million in lost earnings and $1 million in personal damages such as pain and suffering, and said punitive damages are warranted against CNN. But as the second phase of the trial got underway, attorneys for both Young and CNN said Judge William S. Henry of the 14th Judicial Circuit they had reached a settlement.
“It’s been a long three years, and to have the outcome we wanted, which is public vindication, is an incredible feeling. And I’m glad it’s over, and that we don’t have to spend more years and time arguing. about the meaning of a word,” Young said.
JURY FINDS CNN Defamed Navy Veteran, Reaches Settlement on Punitive Damages
U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young spoke to Fox News Digital following his defamation victory against CNN. (Joseph A. Wulfsohn/Fox News Digital)
The settlement amount was not disclosed, but came after an expert witness suggested that $150 million was a reasonable amount to punish CNN.
After the years-long legal battle with CNN, Young tells Fox News Digital that he does not harbor “any animosity” toward the network.
“I think it was a good result for both of us,” Young said. “I can now move on with my life, and I couldn’t even imagine what that would look like or feel like for a long time. I still wonder what that will feel like.” when the dust settles, but in terms of animosity toward CNN, I have none at all.
“I hope they learn something from this experience,” he continued. “I hope they take this as an opportunity to look in the mirror and realize there is room for change and improvement, and if that’s the outcome it has on CNN and maybe others in the media can see that as well something that is positive.”
CNN Defamation Lawsuit: CLOSING ARGUMENTS MADE AS JURY BEGINS TO DECIDE A LAWSUIT AGAINST NETWORK
CNN settled the defamation case against Young after a jury found that the network had defamed him. (John Greim/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Vel Freedman, Young’s lead attorney in the defamation case against CNN, also praised the legal victory.
“We were able to clear Zak’s name, get a verdict and then reach a settlement so he can avoid lengthy appeals and move on with his life,” Freedman told Fox News Digital. “So as a lawyer, it’s exactly what you want to do.”
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a CNN spokesperson said: “We remain proud of our journalists and are 100% committed to strong, fearless and fair reporting at CNN, although we will of course learn whatever useful lessons we can from this case .”
CNN TAX TRIAL: EDITOR WHO SAID STORY WAS ‘FULL OF HOLES LIKE SWISS CHEESE’ GRILLED ON WITNESS STAND
Young accused CNN of defaming him after it aired an image linking him to “black markets” during the segment that first aired on “The Lead with Jake Tapper.” (CNN/screenshot)
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Young accused CNN of defaming him by suggesting he illegally profited from helping people flee Afghanistan on the “black market” during World War II. Biden administration military withdrawal from the country in 2021. Young believed CNN was “destroying his reputation and business” by labeling him as an illegal profiteer exploiting “desperate Afghans” during the November 2021 segment.
Young’s legal team obtained damning internal reporting from CNN by repeatedly finding staffers expressing open hostility toward the Navy veteran. Among those presented to the jury is one who calls him an “s—bag” and an “a–hole” who says he has a “punchable face.”
That has also proven to be the case Alex Marquardtthe CNN correspondent who led the on-air report told a colleague “we’re going to get this Zachary Young woman,” a message often cited during the trial.
Fox News’ Brian Flood and Annie McCuen contributed to this report.
