Saudi Arabia receives extradited citizen wanted for corruption crimes from Russia    Ukraine fights to keep the lights on as Russia hammers power plants    Sweden asks China to cooperate over severed cables    Childcare worker who abused more than 60 girls jailed for life    Indian airlines hit by nearly 1,000 hoax bomb threats    K-Pop group NewJeans split from agency in mistreatment row    Lulu opens new store in Al Fakhriyah, Dammam as it further strengthening its presence in Saudi Arabia New Lulu stores are set to open in Makkah and Madinah    Defending the Truth: Saudi Arabia and the 2034 World Cup    UNCCD COP16 will witness ministerial dialogues to address global land degradation The conference to host first dual-track dialogue on environmental issues    Culture minister visits Diriyah Art Futures    GCC Preparatory Ministerial Meeting discusses developments in Gaza and Lebanon    RCRC Chief: Riyadh Metro, featuring environmental sustainability, will improve quality of life and revolutionize transportation    Saudi Arabia hosts over 13 million foreign residents from 60 countries, says human rights official    Al Taawoun seals AFC Champions League Two knockout spot with 2-1 win over Al Khaldiya    Elon Musk publicizes names of government employees he wants to cut    Al-Jasser: Riyadh Metro to accommodate one million passengers daily    Al Hilal advances to AFC Champions League knockout stage despite 1-1 draw with Al Sadd    Best-selling novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford dies    Most decorated Australian Olympian McKeon retires    Adele doesn't know when she'll perform again after tearful Vegas goodbye    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Trump trial: Publisher says he suppressed negative news
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 23 - 04 - 2024

The underbelly of New York City's tabloid media industry was laid bare in a Manhattan courtroom on Tuesday.
A famous publisher outlined a secret plan he had with Donald Trump and his personal lawyer Michael Cohen, calling it an "agreement among friends".
Prosecutors questioned former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker for nearly three hours.
He testified that the three worked to suppress negative stories about the candidate during his 2016 campaign.
"'This could be a very big story, so I believe that it should be removed from the market'," Pecker said he would advise the former president about killing certain articles.
Pecker's testimony could prove critical for prosecutors as they seek to prove that Trump tried to influence the election by quelling a story of an alleged affair.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records.
Prosecutors allege he tried to cover up a $130,000 (£104,500) payment to porn star Stormy Daniels before he won the race for the White House back in 2016.
Continuing his testimony from Monday as the trial's first witness, Pecker said he met Trump in the late 1980s and eventually became good friends with the former president.
The two had a mutually "beneficial" relationship, in which Trump would share exclusive information with him, such as news about the contestants on his reality TV show, The Apprentice. This helped boost viewership for the show and the National Enquirer, Pecker said.
Shortly after Trump launched his first presidential bid, Pecker said he met with Cohen and Trump in August 2015. There, Pecker said he agreed to suppress negative articles about the former president and promote positive stories about him, a plan Pecker argued should be kept "as quiet as possible".
The tabloid publisher said he also agreed to notify Trump about stories concerning his romantic affairs, as he was "an eligible bachelor" who "dated the most beautiful women", according to Pecker.
Pecker detailed two stories that the three men worked to kill.
One was from Dino Sajudin, a former Trump Tower doorman, who Pecker said tried to sell an article in 2015 about an unsubstantiated rumor that Trump once fathered a child out of wedlock.
After investigating, Pecker said, he found the claim to be "1,000% untrue".
But he agreed with Cohen to pay Sajudin $30,000 for perpetual rights to the story, because it would have been "very embarrassing for the campaign" if it got out, Pecker said.
Just before the end of the day in court, prosecutors also delved into a hush-money agreement made to Playboy model Karen McDougal. She claims she and Trump had a long-term affair, though Trump denies this.
Pecker said he advised the former president to buy McDougal's story, but Trump was unsure.
"'Anytime you do anything like this, it always gets out'," Pecker claimed Trump told him. His company eventually purchased the story for $150,000.
Though prosecutors did not bring charges over either of these payments, the testimony from Tuesday could help paint a picture of the context leading up to Daniels' payment.
Putting the tabloid publisher up on the stand first in the trial was a smart move, according to former Brooklyn prosecutor Julie Rendelman.
"He provides the backdrop for how the whole 'catch and kill' scheme came to be, the players involved, and the timing as it related to Trump's campaign," she said.
Pecker's testimony came after the second day of the hush-money trial got off to a rocky start for the former president's legal team.
The day began with a hearing on whether comments Trump made about those involved in the case violated a gag order.
Sparks quickly flew between his lead lawyer, Todd Blanche, and Justice Juan Merchan.
After prosecutors alleged 10 of his social media posts violated the order, Blanche argued his client had a right to address "political attacks".
Judge Merchan was not buying it.
"You're losing all credibility with the court," he told Blanche, after trying to get him to hurry up his arguments.
Trump is accused by the prosecution of routinely breaking a restriction imposed by the judge that prevents him from publicly attacking witnesses, prosecutors and relatives of court staff.
"He knows about the order, he knows what he's not allowed to do, but he does it anyway," prosecutor Christopher Conroy told the court.
At stake for Trump is a $10,000 fine and a warning that future violations of the order could lead to his imprisonment.
The judge said he would reserve making a ruling about the violations for now.
But former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani said the judge's reproach was a worrying sign for Trump's team.
"They can't control their client, but when the judge tells a lawyer they are losing all their credibility, that's bad," Rahmani said.
In the break that followed the hearing, Trump took to his social media site Truth Social to criticize Judge Merchan and claim that he was being unfairly blocked from defending himself against attacks. — BBC


Clic here to read the story from its source.