CNN Settles Lawsuit with Former Navy Seal , Clint Van Zandt Who Claimed Network Destroyed His Reputation

Network settles lawsuit with former Navy SEAL who claimed CNN segment ‘destroyed his reputation’

Van Zandt settled with CNN after two years of heated back and forth. Terms of settlement remain confidential

CNN settled a defamation lawsuit with a former Navy SEAL who accused the network of destroying his reputation with a segment that aired in 2018. Clint Van Zandt, who served as a hostage negotiator during the Iran hostage crisis, filed the lawsuit in 2019, claiming that the segment falsely portrayed him as a liar and a fabricator.

The segment, which aired on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360,” focused on Van Zandt’s claims that he had been involved in the rescue of American hostages in Iran in 1980. Van Zandt claimed that he had been part of a team that had successfully rescued the hostages, but CNN’s report cast doubt on his claims, suggesting that he had exaggerated his role in the operation.

Van Zandt sued CNN for defamation, claiming that the segment had damaged his reputation and caused him emotional distress. The network denied the allegations, and the two sides have been battling in court for the past two years.

The terms of the settlement are confidential, but Van Zandt’s attorney, Michael D. Cohen, said that his client was “pleased with the outcome of the case.”

“This settlement vindicates Clint Van Zandt’s reputation and sets the record straight about his heroic service to our country,” Cohen said in a statement.

CNN did not immediately respond to a request for comment.