CNN defamation trial: Prosecutor accuses network of spoofing critical ‘theatre’ phone call
Prosecutor at CNN libel trial pending accused CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt of staging his phone call for “theatre,” but the reporter insists the call was made and simply recreated for television.
Zachary Young claims CNN defamed him in a November 2021 report that first aired on “The Lead with Jake Tapper,” suggesting he made illegal money from desperate people trying to flee Afghanistan after Biden administration military retirement, implying that he was involved in “black market” dealings that destroyed his professional reputation.
During the televised segment that was the centerpiece of the trial, CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt claimed to have telephoned Young live. But the Navy veteran insists he never received the call, and screenshots from his Signal account back up the claim that Marquardt didn’t actually make the call.
However, Marquardt testified Monday that he called a number he believed belonged to Young, which jurors believe could help determine who prevails in the high-stakes trial.
CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt is shown allegedly trying to call Zachary Young in the segment at the center of the lawsuit.
Young’s lead attorney, Vel Freedman, showed the jury a video of Marquardt allegedly making the call through Signal, an encrypted messaging app popular among journalists. The number he dialed was saved on his iPhone as Zachary Young. No one answered.
“Make sure the cameraman has a clear view of Zachary Young, contact, will you?” asked Freedman.
“Yes, you can see his long Austrian number there,” Marquardt replied.
Freedman shot back, “We see a long Austrian number there, don’t we?”
“But that’s the one [CNN reporter] Katie Bo Lillis was texting him,” Marquardt replied.
Freedman said he couldn’t see the number, but Marquardt replied, “I know for a fact it was the same number in my phone.”
“The screen shows that you are calling a contact named Zachary Young, correct?” asked Freedman.
“That’s right,” Marquardt said.
Freedman then reminded the CNN correspondent that he had taken an oath to tell the truth.
“Was that Mr. Young’s actual phone number or just the phone number of a friend you saved under the name Zachary Young?” asked Freedman.
“That’s the number that I believed to be Mr. Young’s number that I got from Katie Bo Lillis, because she was texting with him at that number,” Marquardt said.
Zachary Young claims CNN defamed him in a November 2021 report that first aired on “Starring with Jake Tapper.” During the televised segment that was the centerpiece of the trial, CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt claimed to have telephoned Young live.
The prosecution’s legal team showed jurors side-by-side images of Alex Marquardt’s and Zachary Young’s phones, noting where Signal shows missed calls between the parties.
Freedman then showed the jury side-by-side pictures of Marquardt’s and Young’s phones, noting where Signal showed missed calls between the parties. Neither Signal account showed any phone call between Marquardt and Young.
“Signal shows call messages in its conversation history, right,” Freedman said.
“There is, yes,” Marquardt replied.
Freedman explained that the text conversation between Marquardt and Young began on November 10, 2021, and the phone call was allegedly made on November 3, 2021.
“There is no missed call in Mr. Young’s call history, correct?” Freedman said.
Marquardt replied, “I don’t see him there.”
“There is no outgoing call in your message history with Mr. Young, correct?” asked Freedman.
“That’s right,” Marquardt said.
“Is that Zachary Young saved under that phone number?” asked Freedman.
“Yes, it was. It was the same number that Katie Bo Lillis gave me, that he used,” Marquardt said.
Freedman then showed the jury behind-the-scenes footage of Marquardt calling and the producer can be heard instructing him to step back from the camera.
Marquardt said he let it ring “quite a few times” before hanging up because no one answered. He admitted that the recorder told him to hold the phone and pretend to listen.
“You’re pretending to call Mr. Young, right?” Freedman said.
“I don’t know what I was doing at the time, it looks like I was calling,” Marquardt said.
Alex Marquardt testified Monday that he called a number he believed belonged to Zachary Young.
Marquardt admitted that there is no ringing on the video.
“You pretended to call him, didn’t you?” Freedman asked after stopping the video.
“I don’t know,” Marquardt said.
Freedman asked if he was willing to admit that he “pretended” to call Young after the video showed no ringing and the Signal showed no missed call.
“I was holding my phone like I was on the phone after I was on the phone. What you’re getting is a very basic TV production,” Marquardt said. “We’ll get footage that we want to edit into action.”
“The theater, right,” Freedman said, hinting at something that appears on the video.
“This is very standard practice,” Marquardt said.
“That very standard fake phone call practice goes into the final production video, doesn’t it?” Freedman said.
“You saw a very real phone call that I tried to make to Mr. Young and I wish he would have answered so that he could have explained what he was doing. Absolutely there was a call made to Mr. Young that day,” Marquardt said.
Freedman shot back, “Sir, I saw you make a phone call to someone you called Zachary Young … that’s all I saw.”
“I can tell you, Mr. Freedman, I used the phone number that was given to me by my colleague who corresponded with Mr. Young. As far as I knew, that phone number was Mr. Young’s because she was successful in texting with him,” Marquardt said. .
“The same phone number, mind you, that I used a week later to text him that he responded to,” Marquardt added. “As far as I know, that was his phone number. I called him, he didn’t answer.”
Marquardt said at the time that the video shown to the jury is called “filming footage,” which will be edited into the final story.
“This is very standard production,” Marquardt said.
“That clip of you pretending to call Mr. Young is going into the last segment, right?” asked Freedman.
“Yes,” Marquardt said.
“That theater is entering the last segment, correct?” asked Freedman.
“No, that bullet is,” Marquardt replied.
Freedman then asked the court to resume the paused tape of Marquardt behind the scenes allegedly making the calls. When the video resumed, Marquardt was seen waving his arms and saying the word “theatre” to his CNN colleagues in an exaggerated British accent.
“Sir, that theater is entering its final frame, correct?” asked Freedman.
CNN anchor Jake Tapper and correspondent Alex Marquardt during a 2021 segment at the center of a defamation lawsuit. (CNN/Screenshot)
“The phone call is,” Marquardt replied.
“You can’t even pronounce it, can you?” Freedman said. “‘Theatre’ went into the last frame, didn’t it?”
Marquardt insisted he “didn’t fake” the phone call, prompting Freedman to remind the CNN correspondent that he had just explained that faking calls was standard TV production.
“This cinema made it to the last segment of the video, correct?” Freedman said, mimicking Marquardt’s voice saying the word “theatre” in the video.
“The question worked,” Marquardt said as Young was seen flashing a rare smile in the courtroom.
“I appreciate you trying to portray this as some kind of scandal. I can explain what’s going on here,” Marquardt said.
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Freedman then reminded Marquardt that he had previously testified that what he considered “theatrics” was not used in the report.
“You lied to the jury, didn’t you?” asked Freedman.
“I didn’t,” Marquardt said.
Marquardt later insisted that his “theatrical” joke in a behind-the-scenes video was a reference to an old Jon Lovitz sketch on “Saturday Night Live.”
The trial is broadcast live Fox News Digital.
