The far-right cable news network One America News issued an apology to Michael Cohen, Donald Trump's former lawyer and "fixer," on Monday.
OAN retracted a report that mistakenly implied Cohen, instead of Trump, was involved in an affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels.
OAN Retracts False Story About Michael Cohen, Stormy Daniels
The incident in question, along with a subsequent payment made to Daniels by Trump and Cohen, is the focal point of Trump's ongoing criminal trial, which commenced two weeks ago in New York City.
Cohen and Daniels are both important witnesses in Trump's ongoing New York state criminal trial. There are allegations that Trump manipulated business records to conceal a $130,000 payment made to Daniels, supposedly to prevent her from publicly disclosing their alleged affair prior to the 2016 election.
Trump maintains his innocence and refutes any allegations of an affair. The statement released by OAN included a formal apology to Cohen for any potential harm caused by the publication.
According to CNN, the network expressed regret for disseminating the false allegations regarding a Cohen-Daniel affair, which both parties have vehemently denied.
The network announced that the story will be taken down from its website and social media accounts. Based on a source familiar with the matter, no financial payment was included in the retraction.
One America News Network's Previous Defamation Cases
After the inaccurate report, Cohen wasted no time in hiring a prominent defamation lawyer to handle the situation.
That the network had recently settled a defamation case with voting software company Smartmatic, which accused them of spreading false information about the 2020 election, a situation similar to the one that resulted in Fox News paying a $787 million settlement to Dominion Voting Systems.
In its retraction note, OAN acknowledges that Cohen, Daniels, and her former lawyer Michael Avenatti, who OAN relied on as a source for the claims, all refuted the allegations.
A statement given to the network by one of Avenatti's paralegals at the time criticized OAN for airing the story initially. OAN has positioned itself as one of the most fervent pro-Trump news outlets.
The little-watched network has consistently featured unfounded conspiracy theories, particularly following the 2020 election. Some of its journalists have occasionally ventured into right-wing politics.
Last week, an OAN correspondent faced indictment in Arizona for their involvement in the electors scheme, which included working with the Trump campaign during the 2020 election.
OAN is still dealing with another lawsuit for defamation, filed by Nelson's law firm on behalf of Dominion, regarding its promotion of false information about the 2020 election, Daily Beast reported.
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