CIA Director Who Burned Navy Vet to CNN Worked for Network for Years
As NewsBusters reported, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was hassling Navy veteran Zachary Young as he tried to get a book published about his successful defamation trial against CNN, even demanding he delete everything to do with his manuscript. While the CIA never cited what exactly it objected to, it seems as though the Agency was more interested in protecting themselves from…
CIA Demands Navy Vet Delete Entire Manuscript Detailing of CNN Trial
As NewsBusters reported in late June, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was blocking Navy veteran Zachary Young from publishing his book American Spy, which was largely about his successful defamation case against CNN. NewsBusters has now obtained a copy of the letter sent by the CIA’s Author Review Office (ARO), and they were demanding so much more. According to a Samantha R.…
Fired CNN Reporter Lands at Al Jazeera After Defaming Navy Veteran
After blowing in the wind for over a year since CNN fired him, disgraced former chief national security correspondent Alex Marquardt finally found a landing place. He apparently didn’t think he could cut it on his own on Substack, like many other displaced liberal “journalists,” and decided to answer the call from Al Jazeera English. A fitting home for the reporter who authored the video…
CIA Is Attempting to Block Navy Vet from Telling CNN Defamation Story
As NewsBusters was first to report last December, Navy veteran Zachary Young, the man who took CNN to court for malicious defamation and won, was set to release a memoir titled American Spy co-written by American Sniper author Scott McEwen. It would heavily describe CNN’s defamation from his perspective. But new information obtained by NewsBusters is that the Central…
Florida Appeals Court Affirms Ruling Ending Defamation Case Against AP
In a ruling released on Monday, two weeks after oral argument, Florida’s First District Court of Appeal affirmed a ruling from Florida’s 14th Judicial Circuit that threw out a defamation case brought against the Associated Press by Navy Veteran Zachary Young. The ruling means the case will not proceed.
UPDATE: AP Urges Court to Ignore New Case Law That Could Spell Doom
A highly anticipated ruling by the Florida Supreme Court late last week all but ensured the defamation suit filed by Navy veteran Zachary Young against the Associated Press would get revived on appeal. And just days after telling Florida’s First District Court of Appeal to…
Defamation Lawyer Argues Against Using Objective Definitions for Words
For those following NewsBusters’ coverage of the defamation cases brought against CNN (successful) and the Associated Press (on-going) by Navy veteran Zachary Young, one name should be familiar: Charles D. Tobin. A lawyer with Ballard Spahr, Tobin was part of the legal team that represented CNN and then the AP. As with the nature of defamation cases, both hinged on words and their…
Defamation Hearing: AP’s Lawyer Argues Their Stylebook Doesn’t Matter
In a hearing for the defamation case of Zachary Young v. The Associated Press on Tuesday, the AP’s lawyer argued to a panel of three judges for Florida’s First District Court of Appeal that the news organization’s own stylebook didn’t matter when determining the definition of a key word in their allegedly defamatory reporting. However, the AP Stylebook was the go-to standard for many…
Florida Appeals Court Agrees to Hear Defamation Cases Against AP, Puck
On Friday, Florida’s First District Court of Appeals agreed to hear oral arguments in Navy veteran Zackary Young’s two defamation cases against The Associated Press and Puck News. The hearing comes after Judge William Scott Henry of Florida’s 14th Judicial Circuit threw out both cases back in August 2025. Now, there were positive signs for Young that the First DCA could breathe new life into…
Stage Is Set Ahead of Navy Vet's Defamation Appeal Hearing Against AP
As NewsBusters was first to report last November, Navy veteran Zachary Young filed an appeal for his $453 million defamation suit against the Associated Press. Three months later and both sides have submitted their arguments to Florida’s First District Court of Appeals as they await a date for their oral arguments.
Navy Vet Who Beat CNN in Defamation Trial Looks to Put Life on TV
In addition to putting his life into print via his to-be-released memoir American Spy later this year, Navy veteran Zachary Young, the man who took CNN to court for malicious defamation and won, was looking to adapt his story into a serialized television show.
‘American Spy’: Navy Vet Who Beat CNN in Court Releasing Memoir
Releasing in 2026, American Spy will be the memoir of Navy veteran Zachary Young, the man who took CNN to court for malicious defamation and won. The book, published by Harper Collins, was co-written by American Sniper author Scott McEwen and will follow Young through his recruitment and exploits “operating in the hidden world of international espionage,” according to press…
Appealed: Navy Vet Continues to Push for Defamation Case Against Puck
After the case was thrown out in August, on Monday, Navy veteran Zachary Young filed an appeal of his defamation suit against Puck News. In addition to wanting Florida’s First District Court of Appeals to allow the case to proceed, Young also requested they order a new judge be assigned to preside over the case; pointing to Judge William Scott Henry’s comments about the merits of the case.…
Navy Vet Files Appeal in AP Defamation Case, Wants New Judge
On Thanksgiving, Navy veteran Zachary Young filed an appeal for his $453 million defamation suit against the Associated Press. In addition to wanting Florida’s First District Court of Appeals to allow the case to proceed, Young also requested they order a new judge be assigned to preside over the case; pointing to Judge William Scott Henry’s comments about the merits of the case when he threw…
