Q: There's already negative public information in the public domain about Ben Carson, and you ran it in the National Enquirer. A: Yes.
Bove shows all of the negative headlines about Ben Carson. The defense attorney notes that The Guardian reported on malpractice claims about Carson. Pecker agrees.
Bove shows Pecker an exhibit of The Guardian article where the photo of the child in the above screenshot originally ran. theguardian.com/us-news/2015/m…
Bove asks a series of questions about the value of The National Enquirer drawing from a network of sources that they cultivated.
Bove shows Pecker this passage from a WSJ article: "Since last year, the Enquirer has supported Mr. Trump's presidential bid, endorsing him and publishing negative articles about some of his opponents.' He appears to suggest the public knew about the tabloid's support.
Pecker confirms that neither Trump nor Cohen ever paid him any money for either the Sajudin or McDougal stories.
Trump's attorney pivots to Sajudin's story. Q: If this story was true, it was worth a lot of money, right? A: Yes. Pecker agrees with Bove's characterization that it would have been the "biggest National Enquirer story ever."
Context: Pecker also testified during direct examination that, even if it was verified, the Enquirer would have sat on the story until after the election.
Pecker agrees that Sajudin threatened to sell the story elsewhere, and that affected the sky-high price tag on the story.
Trump's lawyer suggests that Pecker signed the deal because he believed there was a small possibility that it was true. Q: You could not walk away from that possibility, however small that might be? Pecker agrees.
Bove tells Pecker that Karen McDougal did not want to publish her story, but rather to restart her career. Pecker agrees.
Bove tries to complicate Pecker's story about Trump's phone call about Karen McDougal. During the case, Pecker said Trump asked whether a Mexican group wanted to buy it for $8 million. Pecker dispelled the rumor, but told him to buy it. But Bove elicits another detail.