Well, isn’t this just the picture of accountability in modern journalism? George Stephanopoulos, the face of ABC News’ flagship program This Week, is apparently so committed to transparency and the truth that he managed to gloss over a $15 million settlement his own network just agreed to pay President-elect Donald Trump. Instead of addressing what is arguably the biggest media story of the week, Stephanopoulos decided to focus on… drones over New Jersey. You can’t make this stuff up.
Here’s the backstory for anyone who missed it: Stephanopoulos found himself in hot water after repeatedly claiming, during a March interview with Rep. Nancy Mace, that Trump had been found “liable for rape” in the E. Jean Carroll civil case. Let’s be clear here—a jury determined Trump was liable for “sexual abuse,” a distinct charge under New York law.
However, that didn’t stop Stephanopoulos from hammering the term “rape” like a drum, repeating it ten times during the interview. When called out, he doubled down, even bragging to Stephen Colbert about refusing to be “cowed” by Trump’s lawsuit. Bold words for someone who just cost his network a fortune in damages.
Fast forward to this weekend, and ABC News quietly agrees to settle the defamation suit for $15 million. Oh, and they’ll also cover a cool $1 million in Trump’s legal fees. The settlement includes a “charitable contribution” to a future Trump Presidential foundation, a concession that probably stings almost as much as the payout itself. But the pièce de résistance? An official statement of “regret” from Stephanopoulos and ABC, tucked away in an editor’s note at the bottom of a long-forgotten article. Talk about eating crow.
You’d think a journalist of Stephanopoulos’s stature would at least acknowledge this on his Sunday show. After all, isn’t journalism supposed to be about owning up to mistakes? Apparently not. Instead, viewers of This Week were treated to stories about cabinet picks, conflicts in Syria, and—yes—mysterious drones over New Jersey. The glaring omission of the Trump settlement felt less like a coincidence and more like a strategic dodge.
BREAKING: George Stephanopoulos and ABC are forced to apologize to President Trump and pay $15 million to settle a defamation suit.
Trump filed a defamation suit against Stephanopoulos after the anchor and former Democrat operative asserted that Trump was found “liable for… pic.twitter.com/6FLJRCMMIW
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) December 14, 2024
And let’s not overlook another curious move: Stephanopoulos quietly deleted his X account over the weekend. Coincidence? Hardly. It’s almost as if he wanted to preemptively avoid the backlash he knew was coming. After all, when liberals themselves are criticizing the settlement as a “knee bent, ring kissed” moment for Stephanopoulos and ABC, you know it’s bad.
What makes this even more satisfying—if we’re being honest—is the sheer irony. For years, networks like ABC have painted Trump as a dangerous threat to democracy and the truth, all while bending facts to suit their narratives. Now, Trump has not only won a legal victory but also forced a major network to fork over millions and admit wrongdoing. For a media landscape that prides itself on holding others accountable, this is poetic justice at its finest.
It doesn’t get any better than this.
President Trump just forced ABC News and George Stephanopoulos to pay up!
The fake news media has been put on notice. pic.twitter.com/fZkIlN9nf1
— Brigitte Gabriel (@ACTBrigitte) December 15, 2024
The takeaway? Media outlets like ABC aren’t immune to the consequences of their actions, no matter how much they try to sweep it under the rug. The fact that Stephanopoulos ignored the settlement on his show speaks volumes about the current state of journalism. It’s all about narratives, not facts, and certainly not accountability. But if this settlement proves anything, it’s that the days of unchecked bias might just be coming to an end—one defamation lawsuit at a time.
