Commonwealth Policy Center

Remember the news reports of the Northern Kentucky student who was supposedly taunting a native American at a rally in Washington D.C. last year? Well, not only was the accusation against Covington Catholic student Nick Sandman untrue, it ended up costing CNN for their shoddy reporting. Sandman originally sought $250 million for defamation of character but CNN opted to settle out of court for an undisclosed sum. The lawsuit stated: “CNN brought down the full force of its corporate power, influence, and wealth on Nicholas by falsely attacking, vilifying, and bullying him despite the fact that he was a minor child.” The story of a young high school student wearing a MAGA hat taunting a native American was tantalizing to news outlets hungry to report a certain narrative. Next time, CNN will likely to be more careful.