--- description: The family of Nicholas Sandmann, the teen caught up in a viral encounter in January, has sued The Washington Post for $250 million title: Nicholas Sandmann Sues the Washington Post for $250M image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1e43208657b57f82/698943d77cdbac415fd5eeeb/screenshot-savannah-guthrie-nick-sandmann-interview.png?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Kentucky](/tag/kentucky/) ## Kentucky Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Teen From the Lincoln Memorial Protest Is Suing the Washington _Post_ for $250 Million by [Hillary Leung](/author/hillary-leung/) ## Hillary Leung Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 20, 2019 7:38 AM CUT  In this screenshot from video, Savannah Guthrie is seen on the Today Show interviewing Nicholas Sandmann on Jan. 23, 2019. In this screenshot from video, Savannah Guthrie is seen on the Today Show interviewing Nicholas Sandmann on Jan. 23, 2019.YouTube by [Hillary Leung](/author/hillary-leung/) ## Hillary Leung Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 20, 2019 7:38 AM CUT The family of a Kentucky teen who was caught up in a viral encounter with a Native American elder during a January rally has [filed a defamation lawsuit](http://www.hemmerlaw.com/blog/for-truth-for-justice-for-nicholas/ "undefined") against The Washington _Post._ The suit claims the newspaper falsely accused 16-year-old Nicholas Sandmann of racist behavior because of its “biased agenda against President Donald J. Trump.” The _Post_ “engaged in a modern-day form of McCarthyism” in its coverage of the incident, according to the lawyers, who are seeking $250 million in damages, the same amount Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos paid to acquire the paper in 2013. Sandmann catapulted to national attention during a school field trip to the March for Life anti-abortion rally in Washington D.C. on Jan. 18\. [Video](http://time.com/5507911/kentucky-teens-maga-indigenous-peoples-march-viral-video/ "undefined") circulated showing Sandmann, in a “Make America Great Again” hat, standing face-to-face with Native American activist Nathan Phillips, who drummed and sang on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial after the the Indigenous Peoples March. The confrontation ignited a sharply [partisan debate](http://time.com/5509832/covington-catholic-nathan-phillips-social-media-division/ "undefined") about the behavior of the rally participants, especially of Sandmann and his [classmates from the Covington Catholic High School](http://time.com/5509641/catholic-school-kentucky-closes-campus-dc-video/ "undefined"). Video clips which emerged later appeared to show the controversy may have started after a group of Black Hebrew Israelites taunted the Kentucky students. The lawsuit, filed by Sandmann’s parents Ted and Julie, claims that the _Post_ “ignored basic journalist standards because it wanted to advance its well-known and easily documented, biased agenda against President Donald J. Trump by impugning individuals perceived to be supporters of the President.” “The _Post_ did not conduct a proper investigation before publishing its false and defamatory statements of and concerning Nicholas,” the lawsuit reads. Kristine Coratti Kelly, the _Post’s_ Vice President for Communications [told Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-covington-suit/teen-in-lincoln-memorial-protest-sues-washington-post-for-250-million-idUSKCN1Q82SW "undefined"), “We are reviewing a copy of the lawsuit and we plan to mount a vigorous defense.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5533198/nicholas-sandmann-covington-suing-washington-post/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5533198/nicholas-sandmann-covington-suing-washington-post/"},"headline":"The Teen From the Lincoln Memorial Protest Is Suing the Washington Post for $250 Million","datePublished":"2019-02-20T07:38:35.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T22:48:37.010Z","description":"The family of Nicholas Sandmann, the teen caught up in a viral encounter in January, has sued The Washington Post for $250 million","url":"https://time.com/5533198/nicholas-sandmann-covington-suing-washington-post/","keywords":["Kentucky","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1e43208657b57f82/698943d77cdbac415fd5eeeb/screenshot-savannah-guthrie-nick-sandmann-interview.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Hillary Leung","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/hillary-leung/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1e43208657b57f82/698943d77cdbac415fd5eeeb/screenshot-savannah-guthrie-nick-sandmann-interview.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"screenshot-savannah-guthrie-nick-sandmann-interview","caption":"TODAY show's Savannah Guthrie interviews Nick Sandmann","creditText":"YouTube","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/kentucky/","name":"Kentucky"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5533198/nicholas-sandmann-covington-suing-washington-post/","name":"The Teen From the Lincoln Memorial Protest Is Suing the Washington Post for $250 Million"}}]}] ```