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

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.

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

CNN will have to fork over at least $5 million to a U.S. Navy veteran after it lost a defamation trial in Florida on Friday. A Panama City, Florida, jury ruled that CNN had defamed security contractor Zachary Young when it aired a 2021 report that said he was part of a “black market” that price-gouged those attempting to flee Afghanistan after the U.

Zachary Young claimed CNN ruined his business and reputation when the network ran a story on private contractors charging Afghans trying to flee their country, but he says he didn't participate in the

Zachary Young alleged CNN smeared him by implying he illegally profited when helping people flee Afghanistan on the "black market" during the Biden administration's military withdrawal from the country in 2021.

CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt defended his story on Zachary Young, a security consultant who charged $14,000 or more to evacuate people from Afghanistan.