Reports indicate that ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos feels devastated by his network's decision to settle a defamation lawsuit with President-elect Donald Trump for $16 million.
According to the New York Post, The legal dispute stemmed from Stephanopoulos inaccurately stating in an interview that Trump had been found liable for rape.
The controversy began during a March 10, 2024, broadcast of ABC's "This Week," when George Stephanopoulos interviewed Republican lawmaker Nancy Mace. Stephanopoulos incorrectly claimed that a jury had found Trump liable for rape, though the actual verdict was for sexual battery and defamation, not rape. This mistake prompted Trump to file a lawsuit against ABC News.
Disney CEO Bob Iger, concerned about potential reputational damage and regulatory consequences for Disney’s business operations, drove the decision to settle the lawsuit before Trump took office. The settlement, finalized on a Saturday, required ABC to make a $15 million donation to Trump’s presidential foundation and museum, along with $1 million to cover Trump’s attorney fees.
To resolve the lawsuit, ABC News forced George Stephanopoulos to apologize and issued a formal retraction. In a joint statement, ABC News and Stephanopoulos said, "ABC News and George Stephanopoulos regret statements regarding President Donald J. Trump made during an interview by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace on ABC’s ‘This Week’ on March 10, 2024." This apology formed part of ABC's broader effort to repair its relationship with Trump.
ABC News executive Debra O'Connell met with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate to mend fences. Many viewed this meeting as a strategic move to reset relations between the network and Trump, particularly with the upcoming administration transition.
George Stephanopoulos, who had recently signed a contract extension with ABC News, faced intense personal and professional turmoil. Sources close to him described him as "apoplectic" and "humiliated" by the settlement decision, which he saw as an affront to his journalistic integrity.
ABC News staff expressed widespread frustration over the network’s lack of public reporting on the settlement. One insider criticized the decision, stating, "It was front-page news everywhere yet ABC doesn’t report on itself," and accused the network of inconsistent reporting ethics.
The network’s failure to disclose the settlement’s specifics publicly further strained internal dynamics and fueled speculation about the decision’s origins. One source suggested, "This wasn’t a news division decision, it was a company decision," indicating that higher corporate levels influenced the lawsuit’s resolution.
Amid the controversy, George Stephanopoulos deactivated his X account, where he had over 2.3 million followers, signaling his withdrawal from public engagement as backlash continued.
Layoffs at ABC News have significantly lowered morale across all departments, further compounding the organizational strain as the news division continues to deal with the fallout from the high-profile settlement.
Meanwhile, George Stephanopoulos, known for his reserved demeanor, maintains a very tight circle of trusted individuals. A colleague explained, "George is a very guarded person. His circle of trust is so small, and a lot of them don’t work [at ABC anymore]." Consequently, this guarded nature has likely shaped his response to the current crisis, possibly isolating him even further within the network.
Despite these challenges, George Stephanopoulos remains a prominent figure in journalism. Nevertheless, he now navigates a profoundly changed landscape at ABC News and in broader media circles. As the network moves forward, the long-term effects of this incident on Stephanopoulos’s career and ABC News’ credibility remain uncertain.
