Covington Teen Nicholas Sandmann Settles $275 Million Lawsuit With NBC

Nicholas Sandmann, a former student from Covington Catholic High School, revealed Friday that he had reached a settlement with NBC in his defamation lawsuit for $275 million.

The terms of the settlement were not made public by either party. In his case against NBC Universal and MSNBC, Sandmann sought $275 million in damages.

According to Sandmann on Twitter, “At this time I would like to release that NBC and I have reached a settlement. The terms are confidential.”

At this time I would like to release that NBC and I have reached a settlement. The terms are confidential.

— Nicholas Sandmann (@N1ckSandmann) December 17, 2021

Following accusations that he and his classmates mocked Native American activist Nathan Phillips during last January’s March for Life event, NBC became the third corporate media entity to reach a settlement with Sandmann. A red “Make America Great Again” hat was on Sandmann’s head as he stood close to Phillips, with a smirk on his face that was widely observed and infuriated many.

Many in the media portrayed Sandmanmn as an angry racist who was the one who started the fight with Phillips in the first place. However, according to the findings of an independent investigation, there was “no evidence that the students chanted the ‘Build the wall’ chant.”

In the days following the media’s attacks on Sandmann, witness mobile phone footage revealed that Phillips approached Sandmann first, according to the evidence. Additionally, video captured several Black Hebrew Israelites confronting both Sandmann’s and Phillip’s groups well before the two groups came face to face with one another.

Sandmann revealed in an interview with NBC that he remained in Phillips’ face because he did not want to be there, saying:

…viewed as disrespectful. Well, now I wish I would have walked away. I didn’t want to be disrespectful to Mr. Phillips and walk away if he was trying to talk to me. But certainly I was surrounded by a lot of people I didn’t know that had their phones out, had cameras and I didn’t want to bump into anyone or seem like I was trying to do something.

The attorneys working with Sandmann accused NBC of producing “at least fifteen defamatory television broadcasts, six defamatory online articles, and many tweets falsely accusing Nicholas and his Covington Catholic High School (‘CovCath’) classmates of racist acts.”

Sandmann’s NBC settlement follows two other settlements already made with the Washington Post and CNN. In January, he reached a settlement with CNN for $275 million, and in July, he reached a settlement with the Washington Post for $250 million.

Earlier this year, Sandmann’s attorney, Todd McMurtry, stated that “as many as thirteen other defendants will be filed.” Other defendants included ABC, CBS, the Guardian, the Huffington Post, NPR, the Hill, and several smaller news organizations.

Stay tuned to The Scoop for any updates.