Did CNN Break the Law With Implied Blackmail Threat?
The media mafia at CNN is once again in damage control mode today after their tracking down of an anonymous Reddit user responsible for the epic video in President Trump’s body-slam tweet and a veiled threat to publicly unveil his real identity.
With the full might of a multi-million-dollar network behind them, the fake news pushers found out the real identity of “HanAssholeSolo” and then published a story on him in which he was smeared as a racist, a hater of Muslims as well as an anti-Semite.
While the Reddit user apologized and made it clear that the video was a satire, the sleuths at CNN conducted a search of his online history in what could be interpreted by some as a way to make an example out of critics.
https://twitter.com/KFILE/status/882410764463681540
The “journalist” responsible for the story was former BuzzFeed bottom-feeder Andrew Kaczynski who now heads up CNN’s KFile investigative team is catching hell over the following statement in which the Reddit user appears to be getting blackmailed by the network.
“CNN is not publishing “HanA**holeSolo’s” name because he is a private citizen who has issued an extensive statement of apology, showed his remorse by saying he has taken down all his offending posts, and because he said he is not going to repeat this ugly behavior on social media again.
In addition, he said his statement could serve as an example to others not to do the same.”
“CNN reserves the right to publish his identity should any of that change.”
Julian Assange of WikiLeaks has expressed an opinion that CNN may actually be in violation of the law which he sent out via his Twitter feed:
A multi-billion dollar TV network blackmailing a private citizen into not making funny videos about it is not journalism, CNN. #CNNBlackmail
— Defend Assange Campaign (@DefendAssange) July 5, 2017
CNN also appears to have committed a federal felony violation of 18 U.S. Code § 241 in relation to the 1st Amendment https://t.co/Ij06te1Bcr pic.twitter.com/NbeYUSRuHN
— Defend Assange Campaign (@DefendAssange) July 5, 2017
If Assange is correct and if any harm comes to “HanAssholeSolo” then someone at CNN could be in some very serious hot water.
He’s not the only one either.
Republican Senator Ted Cruz is asking the same question:
(1/2) Troubling. I assume CNN's lawyers are examining GA § 16-8-16 Theft by extortion. If CNN constructively obtained the gif-maker's IP… https://t.co/ChxqocuDgc
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) July 5, 2017
(2/2) it's a GA crime if they threatened to "Disseminate any information tending to subject any person to hatred, contempt, or ridicule…." https://t.co/ChxqocuDgc
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) July 5, 2017
Kaczynski (spelled just like the Unabomber) is on Twitter this morning trying to put out what is yet another mounting firestorm at the self-proclaimed most trusted name in news.
https://twitter.com/KFILE/status/882417992717537280
https://twitter.com/KFILE/status/882438606270410752
But how else could “CNN reserves the right to publish his identity should any of that change” be taken any other way than an implied threat?
CNN should do the right thing and sack Kaczynski for this gross and dangerous breach of journalistic ethics.