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

[globality]

Chines americans need to decide wethere they are chinese or american.

If you decide the latter you should leave

[white mende man]

China is not America, it's the Chinese people that are suing CNN not American Chinese. And frankly what right has anyone has to call the people of any nation insulting names? Their products are not being sold to us from a barrel of a gun we want their products because we are too cheap to support our own manufacturing base.

[ZenCrusader]

White Mende Man .... IT IS CALLED FREEDOM OF SPEECH. They can do cultural genocide on the Tibetans but we shouldn't offend them with some truth ? get a grip on reality.

[ruleoflaw66]

"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..."

[white mende man]

by the way if they decide that they are Americans they should leave?

[Bystander]

One can only imagine all the ambulance-chasing trial lawyers lined up for a piece of the action.

[amorvincitomnia]

The truth hurts and the Chinese government is smarting. It's sad that some Chinese citizens are taking this so personally. The USA is criticized in media all over the world on a daily basis and you don't see the US government or US citizens suing our detractors. We didn't sue China when one of her government official called the US a "paper tiger". Jack Cafferty is a tell-it-like-it-is journalist and it's his job to give his opinion whether anyone agrees with it or not. These remarks were his own and do not reflect the opinion of CNN. It's glaringly obvious that Mr.Cafferty was referring to the government and not the people of China. This litigation is ridiculous.

[primordialsoup]

So, the Chinese can be sue-happy, too.

[GerryS]

I know it's early in the day, but is this where the "boy named sue" jokes start?

[ThatsNotFunny]

Soo Hah Pi? I went to high school with her!

[GerryS]

Hmmmmm- a primary school teacher and a beautician are suing CNN for $1.3B

who is putting these two simple citizens up to this?? the chinese government??

This is a very straight forward attempt by the Chinese government to muzzle the press in the US!!

Beware of China!

[GerryS]

to the chinese govn't- I'm broke so don't try to sue me--

[kay]

I like Cafferty, because he generally tells the truth.

I'm sick to death of Americans who have one or another romantic, not-based-in-reality "connection" to their country of origin, or tribe, or "homeland".

I think if you want to lobby for for the Old Country, wherever the Old Country is, you should probably head back there, live there, and lobby that country's leaders directly.

[MarkieBee]

yup, then the beautician and the preschool teacher will get run over by a tank. Somehow I think they'll take their shots here...to avoid being shot.

[Democrab]

Why should CNN continue to apologize for juvenile Jack? Why don't they just remove his unchecked mouth from their airways?
He's a biased Obama shill and a Hillary hater and spits his venom at CNN cameras as if what he had to say was somehow relevant. Well he finally shot his mouth off one too many times and CNN is scraping his rotten egg from their face.
His bias disrupts Blitzer's unbiased "Situation Room" and casts a dark cloud over an otherwise informative and balanced news program.
If they keep him on, they should transfer him to the Lou Dobbs show and change the name to "Grumpy Old Newsmen."

[MarkieBee]

so your problem with him is because he prefers Obama over Hillary? LOL. We're talking about China Crabby

[Democrab]

No, I don't have a problem with his choices. I do have a problem with his vitriolic delivery of disgust for the Clintons on a network that boasts "The best political team on television." His comments are poignantly hurtful to Clinton supporters.
The China comments are reflective of his character persona, as is my "Crabby"-ness.

[CountryBeforeParty]

That's great. Sue CNN, and fire Jack Cafferty, for telling the truth, and you support that.


Proud day for America.

[Democrab]

It wasn't the proper venue for his comments.

[artsandminds]

Typical Clintonite, don't like the truth so silence it. Clinton is a republican and her followers are Bushies, just change the names, their actions are the same.

[Democrab]

I am a typical Clintonite. "Typical" is evidently a popular word for Clinton haters.

[skoryras]

Democrab

You must be deaf, dumb, and an idiot.

Jack tells it like it is, right or wrong he's honest. I don't always agree with him but I respect him. I can't say the same for Wolf, Lou Dobbs or Larry King. They got their noses so far up Hillary’s ass they can smell the onion rings.

What Jack said about China is 500% correct. There stuff is junk and dangerous to our Kids, just look at the recalls over the last several months. You probably don't know this, but American businesses have to take the loss. We can’t ship any of this crap back to China because of the Bush trade agreement with them. So they still get their money, now how is that right?

We should sue them, their the ones insulting Americans not the other way around. You should be screaming your lungs out to the Chinese Embassy find their Web Page or address and contact them. Never mind I’ll give it to you’ address 520 12th Ave. New York, NY 10036 Telephone [phone] www.china-embassy.orgg

Be an American, stand up for your country. If we accept this crap from China the rest of the world will do the same. This isn’t the people suing us it’s the Government telling them to sue us. Because of their population and the size of the market they represent American Companies are too afraid to piss them off. It should be the other way around.

[Democrab]

"You must be deaf, dumb, and an idiot."
Great start for a pissant comment.
What's wrong with deaf and dumb people oh great "American?"
Exaggeration is a symptom of weak vocabulary, as in "500% correct."
You appear to be leaning toward the Bush philosophy of attack everything and talk to no one, my country right or wrong, my country.
This is not an attack on America, it's a legal action against a major news organization's uncontrolled talking head who thinks he can freely insult anyone.

[Pema]

I've been to Chin a..Jack is right..and the Chinese are trying desperatly to improve their image while at the same time trying to poision our kids, our animals, and women with the new Miren Birth Control..ask your doctor to check the levels of toxic substances before you or a friend or loved one wants to use it...
Goons and thugs is too nice of a word for the PRC.
Lets remember that the citizens there are railroaded and in fear of speaking out, after all China vivisects it's prisoners and sells the organs cheap to India, did you also know that every crime in China has a capital offense possibilty, so if you go to China behave and hang on to your kidneys.
opps....will China sue ME?

[w8aminute]

Maybe we can start a class-action suit against Coulter and everyone else at Fox for "violating the dignity and reputation" of the American people too!

[1dogs2]

Great idea!!!

[BushBites]

No wonder Bush loves them.

They're exactly alike.

[3reddogs]

Thank you ... that made me laugh out loud!!

[rich3324]

They are like spoiled little children. You want to wear the big boy pants then start acting like a big boy and stop whinning.

[Charlie1]

Between one and two decades ago 60 minutes had a program slandering Ukraine, Eventually persistant Americans of Ukrainian origin got some small monetary compensation; however, the court case got thrown out, under US law a country can not be slandered (going after CBS owned stations license renewal did get their attention though). CNN can sleep soundly,

[KPinSEA]

If the beautician and teacher want to know what a *real* violation of dignity feels like, they could wear "Free Tibet" t-shirts in Tinanmen for a day and see what happens to them in prison.

[Caliphane]

Yeah free speech may not exist in China but in America we have such a thing as the 1st Amendment. Their government is a bunch of goons ans thugs and they have proven themselves as such several times. Cafferty was giving his opinion which, in the past, has targeted other governments as well. This suit is a complete waste of their money and a joke, I'm gonna laugh when they go bankrupt from doing it.

[InDaZone]

I guess China thinks they can censor U.S. citizens and infringe on our freedom of speech.

[stepintothelight]

Wouldn't you expect that if you owned America???

[Charity]

i'd call for a massive boycott of any product from china but goddam our noses are so far up their asses EVERYTHING comes from china. plus, they own us with the debt we have run up with them. our gov't allowed this to happen; jack is right; and he needs to go on cnn and rip them a new one TODAY to show the country that at least we still allow our citizens to have opinions about other governments without sending them to the stockades.

we should still attempt a boycott.

[ThePodiumIsMine]

The government forced you to buy Made in China? What'd they do, send Blackwater over?