Chicago – December 15, 2024
ABC News has agreed to pay $15 million to President-elect Donald Trump’s presidential library to settle a lawsuit over comments made by anchor George Stephanopoulos. The comments were about a civil case involving writer E. Jean Carroll, according to a court document filed on Saturday.
The lawsuit, filed on March 19 in a Florida court, claimed that Stephanopoulos made false statements during a March 10 interview and acted with malice. The statements were widely shared and repeated, the lawsuit said.
The controversy started during an interview with Republican Representative Nancy Mace, who had publicly spoken about being raped as a teenager. Stephanopoulos said Trump was found liable for rape and questioned Mace’s decision to endorse him.
As part of the settlement, ABC News must publish a statement by Sunday on their March 10 online article. The statement will say: “ABC News and George Stephanopoulos regret statements regarding President Donald J. Trump made during an interview by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace on ABC’s This Week on March 10, 2024.”
An ABC News spokesperson said they are glad the lawsuit is resolved. The settlement ends a high-profile legal battle between Trump and the news network.
