In a significant legal development, the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals has revived a defamation lawsuit against CNN that was previously dismissed, about comments made about Project Veritas.
According to Fox News, the defamation suit alleges that CNN may have falsely accused Project Veritas of being banned from Twitter for ‘promoting misinformation.’
The lawsuit stems from statements made by Ana Cabrera, at that time a CNN anchor, during a broadcast in 2021. Cabrera reported that Project Veritas was removed from Twitter for ‘promoting misinformation’. However, according to Project Veritas, their account suspension was due to a violation of Twitter's policy against the ‘publication of private information’.
Dissatisfied with how CNN represented their Twitter ban, Project Veritas requested a correction from the network, which CNN did not provide. This action led Project Veritas to initiate a defamation lawsuit. Initially, the case was dismissed by a district court, concluding that CNN’s coverage did not meet the legal standards for defamation.
However, upon appeal, the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals found credible grounds for defamation and actual malice. The appellate court thus overturned the lower court’s dismissal and remanded the case for further litigation.
The court's decision highlighted the potential impact of Cabrera’s statements on Project Veritas's reputation compared to the actual reasons for their Twitter suspension. The court ruled, "After careful review and with the benefit of oral argument, we conclude that Veritas plausibly alleged a defamation claim under New York law," suggesting that CNN’s broadcast could have involved actual malice.
The decision drew notable remarks from Circuit Judge Ed Carnes, who criticized CNN's approach to truthful reporting in this case. He stated, "If you stay on the bench long enough, you see a lot of things. Still, I never thought I’d see a major news organization downplaying the importance of telling the truth in its broadcasts. But that is what CNN has done in this case."
The revival of the lawsuit comes at a challenging time for CNN, which is simultaneously involved in another defamation case with a U.S. Navy veteran related to the Biden administration's military withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
This second defamation case, which also concerns CNN's reporting integrity, is scheduled to go to trial on January 6. Together, these cases may strain CNN’s legal defenses and shape public perception of the network’s commitment to factual reporting.
Meanwhile, Ana Cabrera, who is at the center of the defamation claim involving Project Veritas, has since moved to MSNBC. After changing networks, Cabrera appeared to alter her earlier statements regarding the reasons behind Project Veritas’s suspension from Twitter.
This legal battle underscores the continual conflict between media networks and the entities they report on, particularly regarding the accuracy of information and the statutes of defamation law.
The appellate court’s decision to send the case back for further proceedings indicates a more detailed examination of the defamation claims against CNN will occur soon.
CNN has not issued a comment on the appellate court's decision at the time. The outcome of the further proceedings will likely be closely watched, given the precedents it could set for how media companies report on controversial entities.
In conclusion, the renewed legal challenge against CNN by Project Veritas over alleged defamation could redefine how news networks handle contentious topics. The appellate court’s emphasis on alleged malice and defamation adds a robust layer to the scrutiny media companies face and underscores the importance of accuracy in journalism.