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Navy vet who beat CNN in defamation trial teams up with 'American Sniper' co-author for upcoming spy memoir
By Brian Flood
Published December 15, 2025
Zachary Young, the U.S. Navy veteran who defeated CNN in a high-profile defamation case, has teamed up with "American Sniper" co-author Scott McEwen for an upcoming memoir "American Spy."
Young, who is CIA-trained, successfully alleged that CNN smeared him by implying he illegally profited when helping people flee Afghanistan on the "black market" during the Biden administration's military withdrawal from the country in 2021. During the trial, Young outlined his extensive training in things such as "brush passes," and other sophisticated ways to exchange sensitive information in hostile areas without being detected.
"This book pulls back the curtain on a world most people never see," McEwen said.
Navy veteran Zachary Young has teamed up with "American Sniper" co-author Scott McEwen for an upcoming memoir "American Spy." (Zachary Young)
"[Young] lived the life that movies are made from. He operated in places where there are no second chances and where the decisions you make determine who lives and who does not," McEwen continued. "His story is raw, real, and impossible to forget."
According to a press release for the book, "American Spy" will tell the story of "an American who spent years working undercover in hostile environments and denied areas, operating in the hidden world of international espionage."
"American Spy" will aim to trace Young’s path from early recruitment to missions that placed him in some of the most dangerous settings on Earth.
JURY FINDS CNN COMMITTED DEFAMATION AGAINST NAVY VETERAN, SETTLEMENT REACHED ON PUNITIVE DAMAGES
Zachary Young settled with CNN for an undisclosed amount after a jury found he was defamed by the network. (Jessica Costescu)
In January, a six-person jury decided Young was owed $4 million in lost earnings and $1 million in personal damages such as pain and suffering, and said punitive damages were warranted against CNN. A settlement was reached before punitive damages were decided by the jury.
The foreman of the jury, Katy Svitenko, told Fox News Digital in her first interview following the trial that the jury was "willing to go as high as $100 million, somewhere in the neighborhood of $50 million to $100 million."
Settlement terms were not disclosed.
CNN DEFAMATION TRIAL: PLAINTIFF TESTIFIES HE LOST SECURITY CLEARANCE IN RECENT COURTROOM DISCOVERY
CNN has previously said it will take "useful lessons" from the decision.
"We remain proud of our journalists and are 100% committed to strong, fearless and fair-minded reporting at CNN, though we will of course take what useful lessons we can from this case," a CNN spokesperson told Fox News Digital following the trial.
William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, is expected to release "American Spy" in 2026.
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