CNN Sued For $1.3 Billion Over Cafferty Remarks

Jack Cafferty set off a firestorm in China after his remarks (seen here) that the the nation is full of "goons and thugs" and that their exports are "junk." The Chinese government demanded that CNN apologize, which they did (lukewarmly), but the apology was apparently not enough for some Chinese citizens.

Reuters reports that CNN is now being sued by two Chinese citizens for $1.3 billion, or one dollar per Chinese citzen:

A Chinese primary school teacher and a beautician have filed a suit against CNN in New York over remarks they say insulted the Chinese people and are seeking $1.3 billion in compensation -- $1 per person in China, a Hong Kong newspaper reported.

The case against the Atlanta-based cable channel, its parent company Turner Broadcasting and Jack Cafferty, the offending commentator, comes after 14 lawyers launched a similar suit in Beijing alleging that Cafferty's remarks earlier this month violated the dignity and reputation of the Chinese people....

In New York, Liang Shubing, the beautician, and Li Lilan, a Beijing-based elementary school instructor, claimed Cafferty's words insulted all Chinese people and "intentionally caused mental harm" to the plaintiffs, the Ta Kung Pao newspaper reported on Thursday.

Previously: China Demands Apology From CNN's Cafferty For "Goons And Thugs" Comment

Comments

[surfcitysteven]

When Mexican Americans act like this, (patriotism for the the expatriate) they are told to put the Mexican flag down and start acting like Americans. These Chinese have the sueing part down, but maybe they need to be reminded where they are. China is a bad country.

[jubo]

China is a police state. Mr Cafferty could have shown some eloquence but his job, after all, is to rival Fox, hence mimic it.

[whatsmyname]

BE CAREFUL OR CHINA WILL BUY NASCAR AND ESPN.....O­h so solly.....­.Lessa go a lacing

[neogejo]

Well, I half agree with him.
I try not to buy items made in China because of the lack of quality.
I do believe, though, that Jack has the right to his opinion. He may have shared it at the wrong time, but he can have it.
CNN is not my favorite place to receive the news, but they did apologize for the blunder.
Let's, let by-gones be by-gones.

[dearpru]

This is a great game! Let's up the ante--we need every family of a U.S. citizen killed by China's poisonous Heparin to sue China for one billion each -- that's somewhere between $60B and $83B at last count. Now, for each family that lost a pet due to China's poisonous pet food -- one million per critter. That's another several hundred million. Let's now get into the cribs made in China that hung infants by their necks until they died -- for each dead infant or brain-dead infant, another billion each. That's somewhere between $3B and $8B. Shall we continue? China sends us furniture and toys coated in lead paint and laced with cancer-causing chemicals. China sends us fish fed chicken poop, which we then feed our kids in their school lunches. China sends us irons, pencil sharpeners, paper shredders and other everyday items that break moments after their warranties expire, but they were so "cheap" that we don't bother to raise a fuss...we just go out and buy more; and more; and more. Their lack of concern for our health, their insolence in producing crap and their inability to be accountable make this exactly the wrong country for us to borrow $1 Trillion to support our ill-conceived war in Iraq. We have been pimped out to this horrid country by George W. Bush. China produces crap, but we put it in our White House. It's the truth, which, by the way, is a defense against slander.

[Rolandc]

... China sends us this ... China sends us that ... why the fuck do we keep buying "this" and "that" from them .... are we that stupid? ... never mind do not answer that and count me out of the bunch. I buy all my shit from Iran and Moscow now -I have a Russian friend who knows someone who knows another guy who works with a guy that can get me bluejeans out of the country by bribing the army general who heads the border house patrol plus I can buy all the roubles I want for a great price ...

[digoweli]

you guys make fun of this as long as you wish, but if the Chinese government is funding this, CNN is in big trouble. It happened to the author Peter Matthiessen who wrote "In the Spirit of Crazy Horse" and was sued by the Governor of South Dakota and the FBI. It was all a "crock" but the legal costs ruined the book.

"Ultimately, both cases were dismissed, but only after years of legal wrangling and millions of dollars in legal expenses. in 1990 when the US Supreme Court refused to hear his appeal, FBI agent Price finally settled his suit. Governor Janklow's suit was also settled in 1990 after the South Dakota Circuit and Supreme Courts dismissed it. The subject of the book Leonard Peltier has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Price and has been designated a political prisoner by Amnesty International, the former Soviet Union, and Desmond Tutu."

But the book was ruined and Peltier is still in jail although Janklow was later convicted of manslaughter when he drove 70 miles an hour in a 55 mile zone, ran a stop sign and killed another driver. He had a purple history of harrassment of the Sioux people in South Dakota and no one grieved. Peter Matthiessen, however, learned his lesson and stayed clear of the "Indian Issue" involving government types that, like Giuliani in New York, might sue or harass him and run up big legal bills. Digoweli

[AlgerHiss]

Don't be stupid. It's a stupid lawsuit that will get dismissed immediately. It will not cost millions in legal fees.

[avraamjack]

.
Like the USA is not filled with goons and thugs?
.
http://www5.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22gang+stalking%22

[RedWhiteandBrooklyn]

Ok... China is filled with UGLY goons and CRIMINALLY INSANE thugs. Sue me, too!

Damn the George W. Bush and Bush administration for ruining our economy so hat we are in such debt to the communist Chinese government that we're paying them billions of dollars of our money in interest payments alone!

[SweetAngie]

I don't like this Cafferty, and I never have, but I totally agree with his comment.

Let's go to court - and let the rest of the American citizens testify about what they REALLY think about doing business with China, killing off the babies they don't want and putting poison in our dog food, and God only knows what else they do to try to poison us.

Afterall, if they really hate us as much as they have always said they do, why on earth would we let them make our baby toys, baby formula, baby foods and all the other food items we eat everyday. Could it be they found a really easy way to get rid of us? Come to think of it . . . . brilliant on their part, since American businessmen are so hungry to do cheap business that they would probably not think out the possible outcome - over the results - to the bottom line. Yes, I'd say they saw us coming.

[QueenCeleste]

The hell with the Chinese. They are ruining are country and their endless flow of products should have been stopped years ago. Bravo Jack, for simply telling the truth.

[S1m0n]

It costs the same to file for 800 bajillion as it does to file for 70 bucks.

[monty]

Awwww, did someone call China bad names? Boo Hoo Hoo. Get used to it.

Interesting that these Chinese people decide to combat the "goons and thugs" remark by a stupid lawsuit that just makes them appear like a bunch of goons and thugs. Pathetic.

They have learned well from American goons and thugs.

[jimi945]

Why are they suing? Bush borrowed that much from them last week. Hell, they should be rich by now. Don't worry, Bush is invading Iran soon, so they will be lending him 100,000,00­0,000,000,­000,000,00­0 dollars more next week. So maybe the lawsuit will be dropped.

[gorgol]

And what about all the US kids that got lead poisoning from the CHINESE TOYS...Wha­t about all the PETS in the US that died a horrible death due to CHINESE PET FOOD....??­?...MAKES YOU WONDER what other CRAP they are sending over..and thanks to BUSH for cutting back INSPECTORS­..who the hell knows what's coming here....EV­EN SOME OF OUR MEDICINES ARE MADE THERE...GA­AD.

[KarateKid]

Pay up, CNN. The network of Ted Turner and Christianne Amanpour has gone down the tubes.

[speakingtruth2power]

The MSM prefers to feed US a balanced diet between fascist and centrist corporatists.

Jack Cafferty is a grumpy old liberal who strays off the MSM's chosen path. This suit

will not go far but it does give them another reason to get rid of this old 'young Turk'.

[dill]

Jack Cafferty is the only one on CNN I miss since I decided I was wasting my time watching "Faux News Lite". Whether you agree with him or not, he is the only commentator on CNN who acts like a REAL journalist.

[paisley101]

Yeah, I know what you mean. I stopped watching CNN after they hired right wing talking hear Glenn Beck. I refuse to watch his biased loonacy! If they want him to represent their "comedy of news" they can count me out!

[OntheContrary]

Don't blame the Chinese for suing CNN and Jack. Law suit, frivilouse or not, is the only American export that has become fashionable, not only in China but all over the world. The Chinese are learning our legal system and this is a good thing. Jack in careless in his choice of words and too blatantly biased and one sided in his commentary. There are some truth to his remark on defective products in general but he spinned it in such as way that the problems all lies with China and the Chinese people. There have been defective products made all over the world and even in America. Just look at the Wine import from Italy. Wine was intentionally diluted with fertilzer to increase profit. According to Reuters, the wine industry is controlled by Mafia. No one talk about it because it is not Chinese. I don't think Jack has the ball to called all Italian mafia would he?! How about the 'Mad Cow' bovin tainted beef from UK. How about the recent e-coli contamination on our vegetable. How about the recalling of the beef due to downer cows. How about Firestone tyre debacle. Well we don't talk about them too much because it is not Chinese and it is not fashionable to bash your own type. We should raise our voice and sue the company responsible for bad products. We should talk about poor quality & dangerous products but not incite racial hatred & name calling.

[richardgordon]

You've got it totally wrong. Freedom of speech is paramount. Whether you like Jack Cafferty or not, (I don't) the attempt by the Chinese to muzzle the American Media is totally outrageous and a real threat to our freedoms. If CNN or the American people cave into Chinese blackmail it is the beginning of the end for freedom in America. I don't want no Arabs telling me what I can print in my Magazines and I sure as hell don't want the Chinese dictating what our press (even though I'm not American- it is our collective freedom they threaten). Tough shi*t. If the Chinese don't like what others think about them, that's their problem. Not ours.

[JNagarya]

Every right is inextricably entwined with a responsibility. Whatever happened to "responsibile journalism" or "responsibility in reporting"?

Isn't that also the result of the blanket, unacceptional defense of "freedom of speech" as being -- it not being possible -- unlimited? Isn't the substitution of infotainment and outright lies for news also a result of that blanket defense?

The protection of freedom of speech is self-evidently the protection of unpopular speech, not of popular speech, which needs no protection. Is the falsification of reality by a minority therefore both acceptable and protected?

[Razz]

Hey, if you don't like Freedom of speech, go hold hands with those two B***ches and go live in China. If you live in the US you have the wright to say what you think. It's bad enough that the Chinese government is suppressing its people in china, its trying to suppress freedom of speech here as well?
Screw the Chinese.

[AlgerHiss]

Exactly. Any Chinese in America who support the Chinese government, go home.

[LionEater]

The Chinese are suing for 1.3 Billion because they got their feelings hurt. boo hoo. Peope in China say the same thing about Americans all the time. Cafferty is an idiot but I have his back on this one.