Did CNN extort an apology out of the Trump Gif-maker?

OK so there’s a bit of a weird mystery over the controversial CNN gif.

Someone figured out who created it. It was some random guy on Reddit.

The journalist who discovered that is getting racist death threats.

Then CNN jumps in. And they find out who the guy was. His real identity.

The apology came after CNN’s KFile identified the man behind “HanA**holeSolo.” Using identifying information that “HanA**holeSolo” posted on Reddit, KFile was able to determine key biographical details, to find the man’s name using a Facebook search and ultimately corroborate details he had made available on Reddit.

On Monday, KFile attempted to contact the man by email and phone but he did not respond. On Tuesday, “HanA**holeSolo” posted his apology on the subreddit /The_Donald and deleted all of his other posts.

It sounds like they’re threatening to doxx him, that is reveal his real identity, in order to get an apology from the guy.

Here’s his apology:

“First of all, I would like to apologize to the members of the reddit community for getting this site and this sub embroiled in a controversy that should never have happened,” he wrote. “I would also like to apologize for the posts made that were racist, bigoted, and anti-semitic. I am in no way this kind of person, I love and accept people of all walks of life and have done so for my entire life. I am not the person that the media portrays me to be in real life, I was trolling and posting things to get a reaction from the subs on reddit and never meant any of the hateful things I said in those posts. I would never support any kind of violence or actions against others simply for what they believe in, their religion, or the lifestyle they choose to have. Nor would I carry out any violence against anyone based upon that or support anyone who did.”

The user further apologized for calls for violence against the press in his statement on Reddit.
“The meme was created purely as satire, it was not meant to be a call to violence against CNN or any other news affiliation,” he wrote. “I had no idea anyone would take it and put sound to it and then have it put up on the President’s Twitter feed. It was a prank, nothing more. What the President’s feed showed was not the original post that was posted here, but loaded up somewhere else and sound added to it then sent out on Twitter. I thought it was the original post that was made and that is why I took credit for it. I have the highest respect for the journalist community and they put their lives on the line every day with the jobs that they do in reporting the news.”

NOW, let’s be honest here. He sounds like a grade A scumbag racist piece of crap.

BUT CNN is basically acting like a scumbag piece of crap themselves. They’re literally threatening to doxx the guy. 

After posting his apology, “HanA**holeSolo” called CNN’s KFile and confirmed his identity. In the interview, “HanA**holeSolo” sounded nervous about his identity being revealed and asked to not be named out of fear for his personal safety and for the public embarrassment it would bring to him and his family.
CNN is not publishing “HanA**holeSolo’s” name because he is a private citizen who has issued an extensive statement of apology, showed his remorse by saying he has taken down all his offending posts, and because he said he is not going to repeat this ugly behavior on social media again. In addition, he said his statement could serve as an example to others not to do the same.
CNN reserves the right to publish his identity should any of that change.
And they’re getting criticized for it.

CNN is acting very irresponsibly here.

To be fair, they’re just acting like the scumbags at Reddit. But they’re supposed to be above that right?

UPDATE:

They’re getting obliterated on Twitter. “CNN Blackmail” is trending number one in the United States right now.

Unfortunately, the other scumbag alt-righters and the dumber of Trump worshippers are exaggerating the story absurdly, thus discrediting their own argument. As usual.


Comment Policy: Please read our comment policy before making a comment. In short, please be respectful of others and do not engage in personal attacks. Otherwise we will revoke your comment privileges.