North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson has filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit against CNN over allegations that have emerged as part of a controversial gubernatorial election cycle. Robinson claims that CNN published false articles alleging his involvement in racist and sexually explicit activities on a porn site, NudeAfrica, and that these reports have caused significant reputational harm ahead of his campaign for office.
The lawsuit, filed in Wake County Superior Court, accuses CNN of knowingly using compromised data from previous breaches to link him to the offensive comments, which include calling himself a “black Nazi.”
“Today, we are taking the first steps to do exactly what I said I was going to do after these scurrilous attacks were launched against myself and my family,” Robinson told reporters on Tuesday. “We are holding CNN accountable. We are going to get to the bottom of what’s going on here.”
Additionally, Robinson is suing local musician and former adult video store employee Louis Love Money for a music video that satirically suggests Robinson owes him money for a bootleg porn tape.
Robinson and his attorney, Jesse Binnall, argue that these actions are politically motivated attempts to interfere with the election.
“We expect to find that there are more bad actors that have been involved in this process to interfere in the election. And there’s more to come,” Binnall said.
The fallout from these allegations has led to resignations within Robinson’s campaign team and distancing by key Republican figures, including Donald Trump.
