CNN casts Covington student Nick Sandmann as someone who ‘sued major media outlets over viral video’... gets swift history lesson

A graphic used by CNN to break down speakers at the Republican National Convention described Nick Sandmann as someone who “sued major media outlets over viral video,” leaving out important details, including their own settlement.

The graphic, spotted by reporter Cameron Gray, also provided no image for Sandmann, despite doing so for others. 

While CNN’s description is technically correct, it is quite misleading. It is true Sandmann sued major media outlets, including CNN, but these were defamation suits stemming from a 2019 video showing the former Covington Catholic High School student seemingly mocking Nathan Phillips, a Native American protester taking part in the Indigenous Peoples March. 

The video shown by CNN and others was a deceptively edited video that only showed a portion of the ‘confrontation.’ This was done despite the full video being available on YouTube. The smaller clip spread like wildfire and appeared to show Sandmann and his classmates who attended a March for Life event as harassers of Phillips and other activists, but the full clip proved the opposite was true. 

This is the “viral video” CNN so casually refers to. 

Both the Washington Post and CNN settled lawsuits from Sandmann, and the Post even issued a correction to their coverage six weeks after the fact. 

The initial coverage led to Sandmann being harassed, doxxed, and made the face of ‘white privilege’ across social media. He could not immediately return to school, and his family had to temporarily move out of their home.

CNN’s very loose description of these events did not go unnoticed by close observers on social media, who saw it as just another example of the network’s deceptive and biased news coverage and were quick to remind them of the facts. 

Sandmann has said his speech at the RNC, which takes place from August 24 through 27, will be the first time he “testifies” about the media.

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