Michael Avenatti Threatens To Personally Sue Daily Caller Reporters For ‘Defamation’
A day after conservative news site The Daily Caller published a critical piece on attorney Michael Avenatti’s past business dealings, the Stormy Daniels lawyer contacted one of the reporters via email and told him he and his colleagues needed to stop with the “hit pieces” or he would file lawsuits against them and the publication for “defamation.”
TheDC’s Peter Hasson posted an email from Avenatti, who is representing Daniels in her legal fight against President Donald Trump and Michael Cohen, after tweeting out that the attorney had threatened him.
.@MichaelAvenatti sent me an email this morning threatening to sue me and my colleagues for reporting on him
— Peter J. Hasson (@peterjhasson) May 14, 2018
Note: @MichaelAvenatti tried to call this off record, which of course aren't terms I agreed to since it was an uninvited email pic.twitter.com/Ve6Guftwqq
— Peter J. Hasson (@peterjhasson) May 14, 2018
“Let me be clear. If you and your colleagues do not stop with the hit pieces that are full of lies and defamatory statements, I will have no choice but to sue each of you and your publication for defamation,” Avenatti wrote, after declaring the email was off the record. (Hasson noted that he never agreed to those terms because Avenatti sent him an unsolicited email.)
He continued, “During that process, we will expose your publication for what it truly is. We will also recover significant damages against each of you that participated personally. So if I were you, I would tell Mr. Trump to find someone else to fabricate things about me.”
In a Trumpian flair, Avenatti concluded the email by telling Hasson that if “you think I’m kidding, you really don’t know anything about me.”
Journalists across the political and ideological spectrum were fairly critical of Avenatti, noting how similar his threats to TheDC’s reporters were to the intimidation tactics used by Trump and Cohen in the past.
Avenatti threatens to sue Daily Caller if it doesn’t stop writing critical stories about him. Pretty… Trumpy, if I do say so myself. https://t.co/UwZgYTjNwF
— Matt Pearce 🦅 (@mattdpearce) May 14, 2018
This is the sort of intimidation tactic, suggesting a complete contempt for what reporters do, that someone like Michael Cohen would use. https://t.co/X8Dm3PTTWC
— Ryan Lizza (@RyanLizza) May 14, 2018
Am obviously more sympathetic to Avenatti, in a lot of ways, than to the Daily Caller, but bullshit legal threats against journalists ALWAYS need to be called out. It's a terrible and irresponsible look. And something's not "OFF THE RECORD" just because you type it, of course https://t.co/t1Q1MuIPmD
— Jesse Singal (@jessesingal) May 14, 2018
This would be getting more attention if it was a reporter for a mainstream or liberal publication and a lawyer representing the other side, but intimidating reporters is despicable no matter who it's directed at. https://t.co/1CB8oIerbH
— Olivia Nuzzi (@Olivianuzzi) May 14, 2018
I've found plenty to criticize in DC stories over the years, but the piece in question seems like a reasonably straightforward dig through public records. https://t.co/bVvYYWzOF3
— Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) May 14, 2018
You can’t say off the record and expect the reporter to abide by it if they didn’t agree beforehand. Also what evidence does Avenatti have the Daily Caller story was provided by Trump as he asserts here?https://t.co/tDLgWw3Hk8
— andrew kaczynski🤔 (@KFILE) May 14, 2018
I look forward to anchors at CNN and other outlets rushing to Daily Caller's defense here and calling Avenatti out for his threats against journalists and a free press. Any time guys. @brianstelter
— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) May 14, 2018
