The verdict upends claims by lawyers for Venture Veritas, the video clip-sting procedure started by James O’Keefe, that its 4-aspect video sequence on Democracy Partners amounted to old-fashioned journalism.
“We thank the Jury for its determination and are deeply appreciative of the time and exertion the customers of the Jury devoted to take into consideration our situation,” Democracy Partners said in a assertion. “Hopefully, the final decision today will help to discourage Mr. O’Keefe and others from conducting these sort of political spy operations.”
In a statement Thursday night, O’Keefe announced that Challenge Veritas will appeal the verdict. “The jury effectively dominated investigative journalists owe a fiduciary duty to the subjects they are investigating,” O’Keefe claimed in a statement, noting also that “investigative journalists may well not deceive the topics they are investigating.” O’Keefe was a regular