07-05-2017, 08:35 PM
Here is an interesting addition to this story...
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Quote:Donald Trump Jr., executive vice president of The Trump Organization, discusses the expansion of Trump hotels, Monday, June 5, 2017, in New York.
With President Trump on his way to Europe, his son Donald Jr. has taken on the job of defending him on Twitter, accusing CNN of “blackmail” in extorting an apology from the creator of a gif showing the president attacking a figure representing the network.
Sunday, Trump tweeted a gif showing him clotheslining a man with a superimposed CNN logo obscuring his face. It was derived from a 2007 publicity stunt at Wrestlemania, involving Trump tackling Vince McMahon, the CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment. It was later revealed that the gif originated on Reddit, where the creator, under the username HanAssholeSolo, has also posted a number of racist and anti-Semitic memes, which he has since removed from the site.
CNN tracked down the Reddit user, but announced that it was not publishing his identity, because he “has issued an extensive statement of apology, showed his remorse by saying he has taken down all his offending posts, and because he said he is not going to repeat this ugly behavior on social media again.”
But the network added a caveat: “CNN reserves the right to publish his identity should any of that change.”
Critics, Donald Trump Jr. among them, quickly speculated CNN may have blackmailed HanAssholeSolo into providing an interview, or issuing an apology, by threatening to publish his identity. In one of his tweets, Trump claimed the network was attempting to “bully a 15 y/o” boy. CNN says the user is an adult.
Amid the backlash, CNN issued a statement defending their decision, citing the potential of a threat to HanAssholeSolo’s safety.
“CNN decided not to publish the name of the Reddit user out of concern for his safety. Any assertion that the network blackmailed or coerced him is false. The user, who is an adult male, not a 15-year-old boy, apologized and deleted his account before ever speaking with our reporter. CNN never made any deal, of any kind, with the user. CNN included its decision to withhold the user’s identity in an effort to be completely transparent that there was no deal.”
Read more and watch a video HERE.