PANAMA CITY, Fla.—CNN chief national security correspondent Alex Marquardt refused to apologize Monday for falsely accusing a Navy veteran of operating in a "black market" to profiteer off Afghans fleeing their homes. Instead, Marquardt gave conflicting testimony, boasted about his Emmy awards, and defended messages insulting the veteran, Zachary Young.
Young slapped CNN with a $1 billion defamation suit over Marquardt’s report, arguing that The Lead with Jake Tapper segment irreparably harmed his reputation and destroyed his company, Nemex Enterprises. Marquardt’s November 2021 reporting singled out Young, portrayed him as an "illegal profiteer," and accused him of charging exorbitant prices to help evacuate people during the Biden-Harris administration's chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.
"I don’t feel the need to apologize to him," Marquardt said repeatedly on the stand Monday. Shortly after, he touted his various honors. "I've won a few Emmy awards. That's kind of the main award in television news."
CNN anchor Jake Tapper also hasn’t apologized, Young testified last week. Anchor Pamela Brown, however, issued an apology while filling in for Tapper, and the phrase "black market" was removed from the online version of the segment. CNN senior editor Fuzz Hogan, who edited the written portion of the report, testified Friday that the text he approved didn’t include the term "black market" and blamed Tapper and producers for the portrayal.
The liberal network faced several setbacks leading up to the trial. Judge William Henry earlier this month ruled that Young could use at trial Tapper’s disparaging comments about Fox News after its $787 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems. Jurors during last week’s selection process appeared open to forcing CNN to cough up a 10-figure payout to Young.
Marquardt is likely unwilling to apologize to Young because he still stands by his reporting. He called Young a "war profiteer" during his testimony and said "everything" in his story was "factual," "accurate," and "fair." But he also admitted he had "no evidence" of Young taking advantage of any Afghans and said the veteran was "exploiting the situation and not the people."
Marquardt also admitted that he did find evidence of legitimate scams targeting Afghan evacuees, but he didn’t follow up on those scams because they weren’t related to Young.
Jurors listened intently during Marquardt’s testimony, with one sitting on the edge of their seat.
In 2022, Marquardt married his fiancée Amanda McClements in Mallorca, Spain, on his family’s 400-year-old estate, People reported. The couple met on Raya, a dating app reserved exclusively for the rich and famous, and were engaged on an uninhabited island in Greece.
During his testimony, the jury was shown numerous disparaging messages Marquardt sent about Young, calling him a "mfucker" in one and seeming to agree he had a "punchable face" in another.
"I don't do hit pieces," Marquardt testified. Jurors were later shown a message in which Marquardt told a CNN assistant editor, "we gonna nail this Zachary Young mfucker."
Young testified last week that he hasn’t worked or made money since the segment aired. An accountant expert witness estimated that Young lost more than $21 million as a result. Marquardt was promoted to chief national security correspondent after the report ran.
Marquardt also denied on the stand that he "zeroed in" on Young. But he told his source, Jill Kornetsky, "We have zeroed in on an American offering outrageous prices," according to a message shown to the jury. Court proceedings indicate Marquardt aggressively pursued sources he believed had dirt on Young and moved on when they didn’t.
"I have proof of the extortion," he added. "I don’t have proof it’s a scam."
Expert witnesses during last week’s court proceedings testified that Young was, in fact, charging reasonable prices given the danger and complexity of operating in a war zone. One said he could have demanded higher prices.
When Young responded to Marquardt’s request for comment about his segment, Marquardt wrote to another colleague, "FFS [for fuck's sake]—fucking young just texted." He testified he wasn’t angry that Young responded.
Marquardt ultimately gave Young only two hours to respond to a detailed list of questions, including one about his ties to the CIA. Young, who last week revealed he was a former agency operative, said that question alone would have taken longer than the deadline he was given since he’d need to seek guidance.
In another message shown in court, CNN producer Michael Conte said Young had "a punchable face."
"Right?" Marquardt responded. He testified that he "was being agreeable" but didn’t actually agree.
Marquardt also disputed Young’s claim that Marquardt never called the veteran. Screenshots showed no missed calls on either’s logs. The jury was shown raw footage of Marquardt pretending to call Young. "Theater," he said at the end of the clip, waving his hands in the air. Marquardt testified that staged phone calls are standard industry practice.