CNN faces backlash over handling of doctored Trump video

NEWYORK— CNN says safety concerns led to its decision not to reveal the identity of theman behind a doctored anti-CNN video. Yet the way the decision was explained, coupled with deep distrust of the network among President Donald Trump’s supporters, provoked a backlash Wednesday.

The network said late Tuesday it had identified the Reddit user who originally posted an old WWE video of Trump “roughing up” pro wrestling maven Vince McMahon, superimposing the CNN logo over McMahon’s face. Trump tweeted a link to the video, with some modifications, and it has become the president’s most-shared social media post yet, according to Twitter.

Reporter Andrew Kaczynski said in an online story that CNN had found the Reddit user, who used the tag “HanA------Solo,” and reached out to him Monday. Before returning Kaczynski’s message the next day, the user posted a public apology for the Trump video— he called it a prank— and for some racist and anti-Semitic postings also made under that name. He said hewas just trying to get a reaction and didn’t mean what he said, andwas closing his Reddit account.

CNN said online that it had decided not to publish the user’s name because he is a private citizen who apologized, showed remorse and said he would not repeat his ugly behavior. “CNN reserves the right to publish his identity should any of that change,” Kaczynski wrote.

That last sentence made CNN a target.

“That’s essentially blackmail,” wrote conservative activist Ben Shapiro .“That’ s CNN stating that it will out the guy if he dares to defy their political perspective or offends them sufficiently.”

Such charges spread swiftly online. Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity shared another video on Twitter, this one showing a professional wrestler whose face was replaced with a Trump picture bashing several other men identified as “CNN” with a chair. “Is CNN going to blackmail this person, too?” Hannity asked.

CNN said Wednesday any claim that it tried to blackmail or coerce the user was false. Kaczynski tweeted that the user told him he had not been threatened in anyway.

Indira Lakshmanan, an expert on journalism ethics for the Poynter Institute, said she has no problem with CNN finding out the user’s identity, since the person put his opinions in the public square and boasted about the president’s retweet.

She said it’s more likely the user pleaded with CNN to have his name withheld out of fear rather than that the network tried to blackmail him in anyway.

Still, she said, the “reserves the right” claim is unnecessarily problematic.