The Sandmann Story (Week 2)
Nicholas Sandmann is a 16 year old high school student whose life has seemingly changed over night, and in more ways than one. Last year, the teen attended an antiabortion rally along with several of his classmates from Covington Catholic High School. Many different activists and groups were present at the rally, and at some point, the group of teen boys from Covington got into an altercation with a Native American activist named Nathan Phillips, with Sandmann at the forefront of the confrontation. The altercation never became physical, but the entire scene was caught on video.
The video shows both Sandmann and Phillips engaged in what appears to be a standoff, as the two stare at each other with no more than a foot or two of separation between them. Phillips is chanting something and beating on a drum that he is holding. Sandmann is wearing a MAGA hat, as are some of his classmates who are also visible in the video. Sandmann does not say anything in the video; he just stares at Phillips with a kind of smirk on his face.
Once social media got a hold of the video, it spread like wildfire. Suddenly, every major news station was covering the story. As usual, the reporting on this incident varied drastically depending on the news outlet. Some of them thought that the teen was completely in the wrong, and should be punished for his behavior toward the Native American man in the video. While other news stations felt that Sandmann had done nothing wrong, and felt sympathy for the teen.
It seems that the nature of the rally, the racial aspect, and the MAGA hat which the boy was wearing in the video, played a large role in the way this story was covered by different news outlets. As the story grew and became more popular, the unfavorable reporting about Sandmanns role in the incident started to have an effect on his personal life. Many people all over the country now believed that Sandmann was a racist and a bigot. This uproar brought on a storm of hate messages and posts about the teen.
Eventually, The Sandmann family had seen enough. They felt that the news coverage of Nicholas was highly defamatory and inaccurate. And so, the family filed lawsuits against multiple major news outlets, who they believed were responsible for the false and negative coverage. Some of these news organizations include: CNN, NBC, and The Washington Post. The Sandmann family sued CNN for $275 million dollars, and the news organization eventually settled. According to The Washington Post, the exact amount of the CNN settlement has not been disclosed. All we know for sure, is that 16 year old Nicholas Sandmann is now a wealthy, and perhaps even infamous, young man.
Link for more about the story: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/cnn-settles-libel-lawsuit-with-covington-catholic-student/2020/01/07/f0b21842-319e-11ea-91fd-82d4e04a3fac_story.html
The video shows both Sandmann and Phillips engaged in what appears to be a standoff, as the two stare at each other with no more than a foot or two of separation between them. Phillips is chanting something and beating on a drum that he is holding. Sandmann is wearing a MAGA hat, as are some of his classmates who are also visible in the video. Sandmann does not say anything in the video; he just stares at Phillips with a kind of smirk on his face.
Once social media got a hold of the video, it spread like wildfire. Suddenly, every major news station was covering the story. As usual, the reporting on this incident varied drastically depending on the news outlet. Some of them thought that the teen was completely in the wrong, and should be punished for his behavior toward the Native American man in the video. While other news stations felt that Sandmann had done nothing wrong, and felt sympathy for the teen.
It seems that the nature of the rally, the racial aspect, and the MAGA hat which the boy was wearing in the video, played a large role in the way this story was covered by different news outlets. As the story grew and became more popular, the unfavorable reporting about Sandmanns role in the incident started to have an effect on his personal life. Many people all over the country now believed that Sandmann was a racist and a bigot. This uproar brought on a storm of hate messages and posts about the teen.
Eventually, The Sandmann family had seen enough. They felt that the news coverage of Nicholas was highly defamatory and inaccurate. And so, the family filed lawsuits against multiple major news outlets, who they believed were responsible for the false and negative coverage. Some of these news organizations include: CNN, NBC, and The Washington Post. The Sandmann family sued CNN for $275 million dollars, and the news organization eventually settled. According to The Washington Post, the exact amount of the CNN settlement has not been disclosed. All we know for sure, is that 16 year old Nicholas Sandmann is now a wealthy, and perhaps even infamous, young man.
Link for more about the story: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/cnn-settles-libel-lawsuit-with-covington-catholic-student/2020/01/07/f0b21842-319e-11ea-91fd-82d4e04a3fac_story.html
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