ABC’s decision to settle a lawsuit filed by Donald Trump over anchor George Stephanopoulos’ technically incorrect claim that the president-elect was found “liable for rape” in a recent civil suit by author E. Jean Carroll drew harsh criticism from two of CNN’s most prominent Trump critics.
Anchor and former White House correspondent Jim Acosta blasted the network, accusing executives of “bending the knee” to the incoming administration. Acosta’s guest, CNN media analyst Brian Stelter, speculated that ABC may have decided to settle “because there might have been embarrassing emails or text messages on ABC servers that were going to become public.”
“So, this might have been a case where ABC is avoiding public embarrassment by paying $15 million,” Stelter said. “But look, there’s a lot of people that say that payment is embarrassing as well. So, this is not the end of the story.”
On Monday, Trump promised similar legal action in threats leveled against Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward, “60 Minutes” and The Des Moines Register.
“It costs a lot of money to do it, but we have to straighten out the press,” he said during a press conference. “Our press is very corrupt, almost as corrupt as our elections are.”
Trump sued ABC and Stephanopoulos in federal court in Miami last Monday, days after the “This Week” host repeatedly misinterpreted the verdicts in Carroll’s two civil lawsuits against Trump.
During a interview with South Carolina Republican Rep. Nancy Mace, Stephanopoulos claimed that Trump had been “found liable for rape” and “defaming the victim of that rape.”
Jim @Acosta and @brianstelter rip ABC settlement with Trump pic.twitter.com/UcGJUtw6f7
— Tommy moderna-vaX-Topher (@tommyxtopher) December 16, 2024
Trump was found guilty of sexual assault but not rape as defined by New York law. He has appealed both verdicts.
The settlement was reached last Friday, the same day a Florida federal judge ordered the parties to sit for separate depositions. Due to the agreement, sworn testimony is no longer required.
ABC News has within 10 days to transfer the $15 million, donated to Trump’s presidential library, to an escrow account that’s being managed by the law firm of Trump’s attorney, Alejandro Brito.
Acosta asked if the agreement would have a “chilling effect” on the news industry.
“The answer is yes,” Stelter replied. “Media lawyers are worried about this, they’re preparing for it. They are preparing their newsrooms for it with the expectation of more lawsuits, more leak investigations, more subpoenas in the months and years to come.”
“You know, there’s a great AP story about this this morning saying there’s a balancing act right now for the press between being fearful and just being prepared, doing our jobs, but being aware of the climate. And maybe that’s partly what ABC was doing here. ABC, as a source there said to me, ‘We needed this problem to go away,’” he continued.
Stelter said Trump has created a climate where litigation against media companies is expected. Even the president-elect is facing multiple defamation suits, he noted.
“So, you know, this turns in multiple directions, right? And what some see as accountability for mistakes on live television. others see as currying favor, a settlement to curry favor with the next president,” Stelter added.
Acosta said the media needs to stand firm against the president but worries if capitulation may cause some fellow journalists to think twice before making critical comments about Trump.
“He’s going to continue to say things that need to be fact checked,” Acosta said. “And you can’t have the news industry worrying about this sort of stuff when they’re just simply doing their jobs.”
Stelter said that the settlement with ABC is not just about this one case but instead a broader agenda to force journalistic outlets into “self-censorship.”
“He did win in this case with a big payment,” he said. “But that broader concern about self-censorship is one that I know many viewers and readers are worried about.”
