Trump Demands CNN Apologize for Publishing ‘Fake’ Victorious Statement From Iran, Links Statement to Nigerian ‘Fake News Site’

President Trump says “authorities” are investigating whether a crime was committed related to CNN publishing what he calls a “false” statement from Iran regarding a two-week ceasefire. It’s the latest example of CNN being accused of taking the Iranians’ side in the conflict.Shortly after Mr. Trump announced a two-week pause in the conflict, CNN published an article that said Iran was claiming victory in its conflict with America. A headline from an article published on CNN.com read, “Iran claims victory, says it forced US to accept 10-point plan.”The article included a quote from what it said was a statement from Iran’s Supreme National Security Council that read, “The enemy, in its unfair, unlawful, and criminal war against the Iranian nation, has suffered an undeniable, historic, and crushing defeat.”CNN also reported that Iran said American officials had agreed to lift all sanctions and withdraw American combat forces from all bases in the region. The statement also claimed the Trump Administration agreed to let Iran keep enriching uranium — something the president has repeatedly said he would not allow — and allow the regime to maintain control over the Strait of Hormuz.Mr. Trump took to Truth Social to skewer the network for publishing that statement, writing, “The alleged Statement put out by CNN World News is a FRAUD, as CNN well knows. The false Statement was linked to a Fake News site (from Nigeria) and, of course, immediately picked up by CNN, and blared out as a ‘legitimate’ headline. The Official Statement by Iran was just released, and posted on TRUTH, below.”The president said that “authorities are looking to determine whether or not a crime was committed on the issuance of the Fake CNN World Statement.”“CNN is being ordered to immediately withdraw this Statement with full apologies for their, as usual, terrible ‘reporting.’ Results of the investigation will be announced in the near future,” he added.In a statement, CNN said that the quote was “obtained by CNN from Iranian officials and reported on multiple Iranian state media outlets. We received the statement from specific official Iranian spokespeople who are known to us.”The network’s Matthew Chance told Anderson Cooper that after Mr. Trump’s objection to the statement, he reached out to Iran’s Foreign Ministry and “they sent me the document themselves, which is exactly the same as the document we originally had. And so I think we’re pretty confident, very confident that this document is authentic.”The New York Times and other outlets also published statements that were reportedly from Iranian officials celebrating a “victory” over America. Those statements appear to be intended to bolster the Iranian regime’s image, and they strike a different tone from an Iranian statement released by Mr. Trump.“If attacks against Iran are halted, our Powerful Armed Forces will cease their defense operations,” the statement read. “For a period of two weeks, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations. The statement released by Mr. Trump also said that American officials had accepted the “general framework of Iran’s 10-point proposal” as a basis for peace negotiations. The decision by CNN to publish the statement from Iran’s Foreign Ministry drew a rebuke from the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, who wrote on X, “More outrageous conduct from CNN. Fake news is bad enough for the country, but pushing out a hoax headline in such a sensitive national security moment as this requires accountability.“Iran put out an official statement that simply cannot be squared with the one CNN’s false headline attributes to them,” he said. “Time for change at CNN.”That warning sparked concerns from free speech activists. The vice president of FIRE, Nico Perrino, posted on X, “The FCC has no authority over CNN. CNN reported on a verified statement made by Iranian officials. No, reporting truthful information is not a crime. (Nor is reporting false information for that matter.) No, reporting truthful yet inconvenient information is not treason or a violation of the Espionage Act.”However, he noted that many members of the Trump Administration have “spent the past decade fighting the misinformation police,” and that Mr. Carr has said the FCC has no “roving mandate to police speech.”While the FCC has no authority over CNN, as it does not broadcast over public airwaves, the message from Mr. Carr comes as the network is set to be acquired by Paramount Skydance — controlled by the Trump-aligned Ellison family — which will likely require approval from the Trump Administration. The CEO of Paramount Skydance, David Ellison, told CNBC that he wants CNN to maintain its independence, but said that the network should speak to 70 percent of Americans instead of the far-left or far-right. Meanwhile, his father, Larry Ellison, who is a Trump supporter, reportedly told the White House that CNN personalities whom the president dislikes, such as Erin Burnett and Brianna Keilar, would be fired if his son’s company acquired the beleaguered network. Last week, CNN’s Alayna Treene was criticized after she said the downing of an F-15E Strike Eagle over Iran was a “huge blow” to the Trump Administration. And at the outset of “Operation Epic Fury,” the network’s Frederik Pleitgen – a German CNN reporter who was one of a handful of western journalists reporting from within Iran – was recently criticized by the State Department’s Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson after he said in a segment that shelves in Iran were stocked and fuel “seems readily available.”“You just don’t see any degree of panic anywhere,” Mr. Plietgen said as he held a cup of coffee.Mr. Johnson wrote, “CNN appears to now be doing straight-up pro-Iran regime propaganda.”Meanwhile, one of CNN’s most recognizable stars from its heyday, Christiane Amanpour, a British-Iranian journalist, has faced criticism from members of the Iranian diaspora who have accused her of being sympathetic toward members of the Iranian regime while taking a more adversarial tone while covering opposition figures.

Trump Demands CNN Apologize for Publishing ‘Fake’ Victorious Statement From Iran, Links Statement to Nigerian ‘Fake News Site’

More from the New York Sun

Israel and Lebanon Coordinate Aid Convoy to Christian Villages in Combat Zone

Emerging Claim That Targeting Civilian Infrastructure Is a War Crime Proves a Bridge Too Far

Stanford Calls Bluff on Students Using Jain Faith To Dodge Meal Plan

More from the New York Sun

Israel and Lebanon Coordinate Aid Convoy to Christian Villages in Combat Zone

Emerging Claim That Targeting Civilian Infrastructure Is a War Crime Proves a Bridge Too Far

Stanford Calls Bluff on Students Using Jain Faith To Dodge Meal Plan

South Florida GOP Congresswoman’s Immigration Reform Bill Sparks Backlash From Colleagues, Conservative Commentariat

Middle-Class Americans Prove the Biggest Winners From Trump’s Tax Cuts in the Big Beautiful Bill

In a Funeral for Economic Liberty, the Casket Cartel Seeks To Bury the Competition

The Double Tragedy of the Jewish Bund

Borrowing a Page From El Salvador’s Bukele, Ecuadoran President Welcomes American Troops To Assist With His Drug Gang Crackdown