A Florida jury concluded the network smeared the man’s reputation, awarding $5 million for losses and suffering and weighing additional punitive damages.

A Florida jury on Friday found CNN guilty of libeling a U.S. Navy veteran in a 2021 story about people paid to rescue endangered Afghans following the Taliban takeover of that country.

Zachary Young sued the network in 2021 after it ran a segment on contractors profiting off refugees trying to flee Afghanistan in the 2021 withdrawal, including his business.

A Florida jury found CNN liable for defaming a security consultant featured in a 2021 report on the exorbitant fees being demanded on the black market to evacuate Afghans during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal.

A jury in Florida on Friday found that CNN defamed a Navy veteran with a report on his business that aired in 2021 and awarded him $5 million damages. The plaintiff, Zachary Young, sued the

Zachary Young alleged CNN defamed him in a report by chief security correspondent Alex Marquardt that said he operated in a "black market."

CNN has been ordered to pay $5 million for defaming a security contractor in a 2021 story about desperate Afghan refugees seeking to flee their country. The contractor, Zachary Young, sued in 2022, alleging that his livelihood was destroyed after the network accused him of operating in a “black market.

The jury deliberated for more than eight hours starting before ruling in favor of Zachary Young in his defamation suit against CNN.