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--:-- Host (Michelle Martin): Donald Trump has said he will pardon the rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. A retired Capitol police officer says that feels like betrayal.
--:-- Host (Michelle Martin): So it feels like sometimes, like, what did I rest my life for? I'm Michelle Martin, that's A. Martinez, and this is Up First from NPR News.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): CNN is in court today defending itself against accusations of defamation. A security contractor who offered to help Afghans flee the Taliban said the network wrongly portrayed him as predatory.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): The trial comes as public perceptions of the media are increasingly negative. And the 82nd Golden Globe Awards came and went last night.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Netflix musical Emilia Perez won big. And Demi Moore scored a major acting award, her first in a long career.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Stay with us. We've got all the news you need to start your day.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): This message comes from NPR sponsor Adobe. Introducing the all-new Adobe Acrobat Studio, now with AI-powered PDF spaces.
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--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Today is January 6th, when Congress is set to certify Donald Trump's victory in the Electoral College.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): We are expecting a much different scene than four years ago today, when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): About 140 police officers were injured. The FBI calls the attack an act of domestic terrorism.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Trump has referred to January 6th as a, quote, day of love, and he's promised to pardon people charged for their role in the attack.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): NPR's Tom Dreisbach has been covering January 6th and its aftermath the last four years. He's with us now, Tom.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: I was sitting at the KPCC studios in Pasadena in stunned silence. I mean, an event that so many of us watched on TV has so many different interpretations. How can that be?
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: Well, in a word, politics.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: In the immediate aftermath of the attack, the FBI Justice Department launched what became the largest single investigation in their histories.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: More than 1,500 cases, 100 of those for violent assaults on police officers. And the most serious cases were for seditious conspiracy against leaders of extremist groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: Most defendants pleaded guilty. The people that went to trial were virtually all convicted by juries or in some cases by judges.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: And as these prosecutions have gone on, the facts that emerged have only been more alarming.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: We've seen more videos of violence. We learned more people had weapons like guns, bats, tasers, pepper spray.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: But as Trump ran for president again, he embraced this idea that the violence on January 6th was overblown.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: He claimed there were no guns, which is not true. And he claimed to supporters that most got a little out of hand, that they've been unjustly prosecuted in his view.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: And that's a narrative, though, I should say, that judges that actually heard these cases saw the evidence, including judges he appointed. They rejected those claims again and again.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: OK, now that he won the election, what do we know about Trump's plan for pardons?
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: Well, during the campaign, Trump repeatedly promised to pardon issue pardons on day one, but he's been vague about exactly whom he would pardon.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: At times, he said it would be on a case basis. He did say he would be open to pardoning people convicted of assaulting police.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: The Trump transition team, I asked them about this, they didn't give me any details. They said they would pardon people who were, quote, denied due process.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: But as I mentioned, most people pleaded guilty. Others decided to try their cases in front of a jury and most lost.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: Now, you've been talking with police officers who were injured on January 6th. What have they been saying?
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: Well, I spoke to, for example, Aquilino Ganel. He was a sergeant in the Capitol Police on that day. He witnessed some of the worst violence. His injuries actually forced him to retire.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: And here is what he told me when I asked how he was feeling about the election. Honestly, he tried. So it feels like sometimes, like, what did I risk my life for?
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: I also talked with the family of Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick. He was assaulted with pepper spray on January 6th. He died of a stroke the following day.
--:-- Tom Dreisbach: His mom, Gladys, said she's been crying, sometimes just out of the blue. What I'm very upset about that might happen is that he's going to let all these people out of jail. It's just, it's just not right.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Today, CNN is in court fighting a defamation lawsuit. A security contractor who had offered to evacuate people from Afghanistan says he sued CNN to clear his name.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): As NPR's David Folkenflick reports, the case arrives at a moment when the news media is under increased scrutiny and legal pressure.
--:-- David Folkenflick: So, David, tell us about this contractor. Why is he suing CNN?
--:-- David Folkenflick: So let's go back to August of 2021 and the chaos that ensued when the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan and the Taliban extended its control to the country.
--:-- David Folkenflick: A security contractor named Zachary Young offered services for a fee to get people out, many thousands of dollars apiece.
--:-- David Folkenflick: CNN reported that Afghans who are trying to get relatives out felt they were being price gouged. They used the words exorbitant prices, the term black market.
--:-- David Folkenflick: But Young's attorneys say, look, the character of our client was maligned. He was not doing this for individuals who are desperate simply, but for deeper pocket organizations like corporations, non-government organizations from the U.S. and Europe, and that he lost millions of dollars as a result of this story.
--:-- David Folkenflick: All right. So what does CNN say?
--:-- David Folkenflick: So the network says a couple of things here. It apologized some months later.
--:-- David Folkenflick: The story originally appeared on The Lead with Jake Tapper. Substitute host Pamela Brown apologized on the air saying the network shouldn't have applied the label black market. Didn't mean to apply that to Mr. Young, and it shouldn't have been in the story.
--:-- David Folkenflick: And then it said we just reflecting the concerns of the Afghans we spoke to here.
--:-- David Folkenflick: But its lawyers also have taken a more aggressive tone in legal documents filed in motions for this case.
--:-- David Folkenflick: They said, look, we learned that Young lied to our reporters during the reporting of stories and we were unable to confirm that he evacuated anybody as he claimed.
--:-- David Folkenflick: How strong is this case against CNN?
--:-- David Folkenflick: Well, it's really interesting to go through and look at the documents.
--:-- David Folkenflick: And let's remember that, you know, any kinds of exchanges from Slack or emails or texts or whatever, in any kind of case like this, are going to be necessarily a narrow window into it.
--:-- David Folkenflick: It may not reflect the full context. But you're seeing editors right as the story is going to air and is about to, a fuller version of the story is about to be published online.
--:-- David Folkenflick: These editors internally at CNN are expressing real misgivings. They say, we don't have the goods here.
--:-- David Folkenflick: In one exchange, like, look, let's just hope that we just keep with the video version of the story and not do anything with the written story.
--:-- David Folkenflick: It's about 80 percent emotion and maybe 20 percent facts. We don't have it there.
--:-- David Folkenflick: I spoke to two prominent First Amendment lawyers, one an expert on it at the University of Florida where the case is being held.
--:-- David Folkenflick: Another used to be the chief global counsel for Bloomberg News. And they say these are all red flags.
--:-- David Folkenflick: In fact, the one formerly with Bloomberg News lawyer named Charles Glasser said CNN simply should settle here.
--:-- David Folkenflick: It got this wrong. And David, there is a much larger context for this legal battle going on right now.
--:-- David Folkenflick: Right. Well, you're seeing just an enormous surge of defamation lawsuits against news organizations in recent years, including, let's be honest, NPR.
--:-- David Folkenflick: And there's no ties between Zachary Young, or at least on my part, known between Zachary Young and incoming President Donald Trump.
--:-- David Folkenflick: But the incoming president and his allies have promised an assault against the press.
--:-- David Folkenflick: You've seen it rhetorically. They've promised to use the powers of governments and the courts.
--:-- David Folkenflick: And let's use one example recently. The Walt Disney Company just agreed to pay $15 million to a Trump foundation, a million in legal fees to settle a Trump defamation suit against ABC News.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): The 82nd Golden Globes were awarded last night in Beverly Hills. Netflix's Emilia Perez took home the most movie awards, including one for Best Musical or Comedy Film, and one for co-star Zoe Saldana as supporting actress.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Shogun led wins on the television side.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): NPR Entertainment correspondent Madalita El Barco was there inside the ballroom at the Beverly Hilton Hotel joins us now, Madalita.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: So let's start with who won. What were the highlights?
--:-- Madalita El Barco: Well, as you said, Emilia Perez was a big winner, and that was no surprise.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: This film about a Mexican cartel leader's trans journey was also celebrated for one of its original songs, and it was named the best non-English language film at the Globes.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: Also, The Brutalist became the night's best motion picture drama.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: Adrian Brody got a Golden Globe for starring as a Jewish Hungarian architect who immigrates to America after World War II.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: The award for best director of a motion picture went to Brady Corbet who also co-wrote The Brutalist.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: No one was asking for a three-film about a mid-designer on 70mm. But it works.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: And he urged Hollywood to take more chances.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Just a few years ago, the Golden Globes were controversial.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): I mean, can you remind us what that was all about?
--:-- Madalita El Barco: Yeah, well, there was a boycott in 2022 after the LA Times reported that there were no black members of the HFPA, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, that used to hand out these awards.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: And there were also ethical concerns about the organization.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: And it's since been bought, and the HFPA was formally disbanded.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: They expanded the number and types of voting members. So now it includes more than 300 entertainment journalists from around the world.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Yeah, and you wouldn't even know anything about that controversy based on the awards last night because it seemed like people were having a lot of fun there.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): And stand-up comedian Nikki Glaser hosted the show.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: Well, Nikki Glaser was a hit. And as you may know, she's known for roasting celebrities.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: Last night, she had some of the biggest Hollywood stars laughing at themselves.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: You're all so famous, so talented, so powerful. I mean, you could really do anything.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: I mean, except tell the country who to vote for. But it's okay. You'll get them next time if there is one.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: I'm scared.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Any big surprises last night?
--:-- Madalita El Barco: You know, the movie musical Wicked only got one win for its box office achievements.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: That's really an award for the fans.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: And Demi Moore surprised even herself when she was crowned Best Actress in a musical or comedy.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: She co-starred in the movie The Substance.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: And during her speech, she said it was her very first major acting award, even though she's been at it for more than 45 years.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: She recalled a producer once told her she was a popcorn actress and that she thought that maybe was her limit.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: And as I was at kind of a low point, I had this magical, bold, courageous, out-of-the-box, absolutely bonkers script come across my desk called The Substance.
--:-- Madalita El Barco: And the universe told me that you're not done.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): We'll see how all of these films do at the Oscars. The Golden Globes are just the start of awards season.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): I know.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): That's NPR entertainment correspondent, Madalita El Barco. Madalita, thanks.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Thank you.
--:-- Host (Michelle Martin): And that's Up First for Monday, January 6th. I'm Amy Martinez.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): And I'm Michelle Martin.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): And remember, you can listen to this podcast sponsor-free while financially supporting public media with Up First Plus.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Learn more at plus.npr.org.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): That's P-L-U-S dot N-P-R dot org.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Today's episode of Up First was edited by Barry Hardiman, Emily Kopp, Claire Lombardo, Ali Schweitzer, and Alice Wolfley.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): It was produced by Zia Butch, Nia Dumas, and Ben Abrams.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott, and our technical director is Carly Strange.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): Join us again tomorrow.
--:-- Host (A. Martinez): A very special ensemble.
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