Right-wing news outlet OAN withdraws unfounded claims about Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels' alleged affair.
Cohen and Daniels are essential witnesses against Trump in his current New York state criminal case. Trump is charged with altering business records to hide the $130,000 payment Daniels received to prevent her from publicly disclosing their alleged relationship before 2016's election.
Trump has pleaded not guilty and denies the affair.
Recently, OAN (One America News) made an admission, publicly apologizing to Cohen for any harm caused due to their publication of the untrue story about his affair with Daniels. The network admitted that they "regret" publishing the "false" allegations, which both parties have denied. The text will be erased from their website and social media platforms.
This retraction did not involve any monetary compensation, according to a source.
The piece was published a month ago, based on a sole anonymous source's claim that Cohen and Daniels had a long-standing affair, stating that "the entire hush money plan was concocted" by Cohen. These false allegations seem to arise from a far-right figure who spread these accusations on X, previously known as Twitter.
"The idea that before the election, I would extort the man I supported so eagerly and believed would become the president, all for $130,000 that I didn't even keep for myself... is utterly absurd. It's just plain stupid," Cohen said in a statement.
OAN's acknowledgment of having published false information serves as yet another example of the repercussions faced by right-wing media outlets for promoting pro-Trump disinformation. OAN has recently settled a defamation lawsuit with Smartmatic, a voting technology business falsely accused of manipulating the 2020 elections against Trump. The specifics of the settlement haven't been revealed.
The swiftness at which OAN resolved the Cohen conflict – within four weeks of the story's publishing – highlights the potential dangers the network could face from further defamation lawsuits.
Cohen got in touch with renowned attorney Justin Nelson after the story surfaced. Nelson is known for representing Dominion Voting Systems in their successful defamation case against Fox News, which resulted in an unprecedented $787 million settlement in 2021.
"Today's retraction from OAN symbolizes a triumph for accountability," Nelson stated. "This retraction isn't about money. It's about defending the truth."
An OAN attorney didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
OAN has earned a reputation as one of the most extreme pro-Trump news outlets. The network with a small following has frequently provided a platform for unfounded conspiracy theories, with the most notable example being in the aftermath of the 2020 election.
Its reporters have at times crossed the line into right-wing political activities. For instance, an OAN journalist working concurrently with the Trump campaign regarding its 2020 fake electors was arrested last week in Arizona in connection with the electors scheme.
OAN continues to face a separate defamation lawsuit filed by Nelson's company in the name of Dominion over its promotion of false claims concerning the 2020 elections.
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Source: edition.cnn.com
