In 2016, the Reveal Podcast of the Center for Investigative Reporting produced a multi-part

expassee on the Maryland-based charity Planet Aid and its connection to a Danish cult called

Tfinned. The series documented abuse of U.S. foreign aid by the charity and its subcontractors,

the diversion of charity donations to the cult, the shakedown of its own employees to kick back

chunks of their salaries, and elaborate efforts to disguise the schemes from government

auditors on the ground in East Africa.

Without offering evidence to rebut the allegations, the charity promptly sued the news

organization for liable. A week ago, a federal judge in California ruled in favor of the

Center for Investigative Reporting. It was a victory at the expense of millions of dollars in legal fees and thousands of man

hours.

For those who are savoring defamation suits against Fox News for its voter fraud lies and

incitements, the Planet Aid case is a sobering object lesson in the dangers posed by liable cases to even the most

scrupulous and rigorous journalism.

Victoria Baranetsky is General Counsel at the Center for Investigative Reporting.

Victoria, welcome to OTM.

So nice to meet you, Bob.

So congratulations, I guess.

What did it cost you guys to be proven non-liars?

Cost us quite a heavy final number upwards of several millions dollars, but moreover,

it costs a lot of time, resources, and sleepless nights for myself and everyone else involved with this case.

All right. More on the implications of this litigation to follow, I promise. But first, please, just give me a capsule version of the reporting that you did that led to the lawsuit and the stories revelations?

Sure.

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