CNN Trial Juror: Network Emails Critical to Verdict

A juror who ruled in favor of a 49-year-old Navy veteran in his defamation suit against CNN said the network's foul-mouthed texts were a critical factor in the verdict.

Last month, a Florida jury found CNN liable of defamation against U.S. Navy veteran Zachary Young. Young was among individuals helping to evacuate people from Afghanistan following the 2021 U.S. military withdrawal from the country. He filed suit against the network over a November 2022 report that claimed he illegally profited as a security consultant helping corporations remove staff from the war-torn country and exploited desperate Afghans by charging exorbitant fees.

Katy Svitenko, a 73-year-old retired teacher, said CNN's communications regarding Young helped move her and five other jurors to rule in favor of the veteran. Speaking to Fox News, Svitenko said that CNN would have to get "on its hands and knees begging" to sway her opinion after seeing the text exchanges.

The report included the use Young's photo and name along with a label stating that Afghan evacuees were trapped in a dangerous "black market." The segment was led by correspondent Alex Marquardt and aired on "The Lead with Jake Tapper." The jury decided on $5 million in damages against CNN. A second phase of the trial will assess any punitive damages to be paid.

"Wow, this guy is an a**hole," wrote senior reporter Katie Bo Lillis to Marquardt in a text exchange prior to the segment and then labeled Young a "scumbag."

"We're gonna nail this Zachary Young motherf***er," was one message sent by senior national security correspondent Marquardt. Michael Conte, a segment producer, opined that Young had "a punchable face."

Svitenko also noted that it was Marquadt's demeanor during the trial that swayed her opinion. "He was arrogant. He acted as though he really didn't need to be there. He was far too important to be sitting there on the witness stand." Svitenko said the more the CNN staffers spoke, the worse it got for them, and the flurry of derogatory emails just sealed the deal. "[The emails] reminded me of middle school name-calling of people that they had never even met or didn't know or, you know, bullying."

"And it was those emails that gave us the defamation charge," adding, "It was obvious to the entire jury that [Marquardt] was out to get him."

Information from The Associated Press and Reuters was used in this report.

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