Sean “Diddy” Combs has refiled his defamation lawsuit against NewsNation parent company Nexstar as well as a former associate and his attorney, and is now demanding $100 million in damages.
Combs initially filed the lawsuit in January over accusations made by Courtney Burgess and later his attorney, Ariel Mitchell, during separate appearance on NewsNation, that Combs recorded recorded sexual encounters with minors.
“In this pitiful spectacle, all pretense of objectivity has been abandoned, as a global audience feasts at the all-you-can-eat buffet of wild lies and conspiracy theories,” the new lawsuit read. “Mitchell and Burgess are among the worst perpetrators in this offensive scenario.”
It continued: “They eagerly court every opportunity to broadcast blatant falsehoods, pretending they have proof that Mr. Combs engaged in heinous acts, knowing that no such proof exists.”
In the original interview with NewsNation, Burgess said he was working in the Atlanta music industry when Combs’ ex-girlfriend Kim Porter, who shares four children with the rapper, gave him 11 flash drives that contained sex tapes involving at least eight celebrities.
The initial New York lawsuit claimed Burgess, Mitchell and Nextstar engaged in a “willful scheme to fabricate and broadcast outrageous lies.” The suit went on, saying these falsehoods were leveraged “to gain social media fame, enrich themselves, and strip Mr. Combs of his reputation, livelihood, and a right to a fair trial.”
The new filing claimed the interviews caused “severe reputational harm” and the comments Burgess made led to the “media frenzy” that followed Diddy throughout from his initial September arrest through his trial.
In July, the rap mogul was found not guilty of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking by a New York jury. He was, however, found guilty on two prostitution charges. Each of the prostitution charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years.
