Zachary Young alleged CNN defamed him in a report by chief security correspondent Alex Marquardt that said he operated in a "black market."

A Florida jury began deliberations this afternoon in a security consultant’s defamation lawsuit against CNN. Zachary Young sued the network following a report in 2021 that he sought exorbitant fees to evacuate Afghans in what amounted to a black market in the chaotic U.

The case, which involved a 2021 segment about a private security contractor in Afghanistan, played out as media organizations face more legal and political pressures.

CNN reached a settlement on Friday with a U.S. Navy veteran who helped evacuate people from Afghanistan after the U.S. military withdrew from the country in 2021, a judge said on Friday, hours after a jury found the TV news outlet liable for defaming him.

The rare defamation trial involving a major media company could serve as a deterrent to other outlets.