Defamation Suit: Piker Claims Jennings Doctored Video
The streamer alleges a CNN commentator spliced clips from three livestreams to falsely portray him as supporting lynchings during the 2024 election cycle.
By Andrew Kovalenko ·
Hasan Piker, a progressive commentator with a massive online following, has turned to the federal courts to address a dispute with conservative pundit Scott Jennings over a video clip aired in August. Piker filed a 38-page complaint in Washington, D.C., federal court on Tuesday, seeking $72.5 million in damages.
The lawsuit centers on an episode of The Scott Jennings Show that aired on August 11. In the complaint, Piker’s legal team argues that Jennings did not simply misquote or mischaracterize the streamer. Instead, they claim Jennings presented a fabricated video that combined footage from three separate 2024 Twitch livestreams and rearranged the sequence of Piker’s remarks. The suit states that Jennings added a made-up quotation that Piker never uttered and made accusations that went beyond what the manipulated footage purported to show.
During the broadcast, Jennings, who also serves as a CNN commentator, described Piker as a "radical socialist streamer" and a close ally of Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. Jennings claimed Piker had been "calling for Black voters to be lynched." The complaint counters that Piker has never advocated for the lynching of Black Americans or proposed any plan resembling the one Jennings attributed to him.
The crux of the dispute involves a specific clip where Piker makes sarcastic remarks about returning to "a better time when lynchings were happening." The complaint explains that Piker was reacting to an October 29, 2024, YouTube debate between two Black political commentators. In the original footage, a conservative commentator blamed "woke DAs" for policies harming Black people. Piker responded by mocking the statement, saying, "He said, 'We need more Klansmen, okay? Can we go back to a better time when lynchings were happening? This is what I like as a Black man.'"
Jennings’ video edited out the context of that debate. The clip was presented with the caption "PIKER: 'LET'S GO BACK TO A BETTER TIME WHEN LYNCHINGS WERE HAPPENING,'" which the complaint states was never actually said by Piker as a personal endorsement. Piker’s attorney, Daniel Watkins, told NBC News that the presentation was "a lie." Watkins added that while Jennings has the right to disagree with Piker, he has no right to invent what Piker said.
Piker’s legal team alleges that Jennings had a "professional and political incentive" to smear the streamer. The complaint notes that in the weeks surrounding the publication of the video, Jennings was publicly reported to be under consideration for the position of White House Press Secretary. The suit also suggests that the smear campaign was intended to undermine El-Sayed’s support among Black voters in Michigan.
Piker is seeking $27.5 million in compensatory damages and $45 million in punitive damages. He is a prominent social media figure with more than 3.1 million Twitch followers, 2 million YouTube subscribers, and roughly 1.9 million Instagram followers. While he has campaigned for several Democratic candidates, he remains a controversial figure in the party and has faced accusations from Jewish organizations of promoting antisemitic tropes.
Before filing the lawsuit, Piker’s lawyers sent a written demand to Jennings’ legal team in August requesting a retraction. The complaint states that Jennings’ lawyers acknowledged receiving the letter but have not issued a substantive response. Jennings did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News.
As of Wednesday, Jennings’ post containing the allegedly doctored video remained on the platform X. The post had accumulated three million views by that time. The complaint argues that the continued visibility of the clip has sustained the damage to Piker’s reputation.
