North Carolina governor candidate Mark Robinson and CNN row over ‘black Nazi’ post claims

North Carolina’s Republican Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson has filed a lawsuit towards CNN, accusing the community of defamation over a report that claimed he made specific racial and sexual posts on a pornography web site’s message board. 

The CNN report first aired on 19 September alleged that Robinson posted inflammatory remarks on a pornographic web site over a decade in the past, together with calling himself a “black Nazi” and praising Adolf Hitler over former US President Barack Obama. 

CNN linked the message board account to Robinson by evaluating usernames, e mail addresses, and biographical particulars. 

Robinson, who can be North Carolina’s first black governor if elected, has denied creating the offensive posts, calling the report a “high-tech lynching” by political opponents aiming to destroy his marketing campaign. 

He introduced the lawsuit throughout a information convention in Raleigh, the place his lawyer argued that CNN ignored proof of Robinson’s knowledge being compromised in a number of breaches. The lawsuit seeks a minimum of $50 million (€46m) in damages. 

The lawsuit, submitted to Wake County Superior Court docket, comes simply weeks after the report led many Republican officers, together with Donald Trump, to distance themselves from Robinson’s gubernatorial marketing campaign. 

Along with CNN, the lawsuit additionally names Greensboro punk singer Louis Love Cash, who accused Robinson of frequenting a porn store within the Nineties and early 2000s. Robinson denies the allegations and claims the statements are a part of a coordinated effort to derail his marketing campaign. 

Following the report, key employees members from Robinson’s marketing campaign resigned, and the Republican Governors Affiliation withdrew its monetary backing. His marketing campaign has since scaled again its tv commercials, opting to concentrate on in-person occasions. 

Robinson, who has confronted previous criticism for controversial remarks on abortion and LGBTQ+ points, stays behind Democratic rival Josh Stein in polls. 

CNN declined to touch upon the lawsuit. In the meantime, Stein’s spokesperson acknowledged that Robinson’s suitability for governor was in query even earlier than the report, emphasising that North Carolinians deserve higher management.