(NationalUSNews.com) — The former CEO of American Media, Inc., and publisher of the National Enquirer magazine, David Pecker, recently gave testimony during former President Donald Trump’s ongoing criminal trial in Manhattan.
Pecker detailed his history with former President Trump and shared information about how he changed his publication’s coverage of Trump as the former president led his 2016 presidential campaign. Pecker shared information about how he first met Trump in the 1990s and how he maintained a friendly relationship with Trump throughout the 2000s and 2010s. Pecker’s testimony marks the first witness to appear in Trump’s criminal trial and paints a negative picture of the former president.
Pecker’s testimony detailed how the former publisher first met Trump and how he helped Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign. Pecker admitted to publishing stories that provided favorable coverage to Trump and his political allies and that he purposely hid stories that drew attention to scandals surrounding the former president. Pecker also said that he promoted stories that covered Trump’s opponents, such as former Senator Hillary Clinton, in a negative light.
Among the most damning details featured in Pecker’s testimony is his acknowledgment of cooperation between his publication, Trump, and Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen. According to Pecker, the three worked together to help change the National Enquirer’s coverage of the former president, and he worked with Trump’s political campaign to inform them about potentially damaging stories regarding Trump. Pecker claims that he also agreed to look out for any stories about Trump’s relationships with women and purchase them from writers to make sure they wouldn’t reach publication.
Pecker could also address his involvement in the alleged “hush money” scheme that prosecutors are attempting to prove Trump participated in, which saw the former president allegedly pay off adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Pecker claims he helped Trump facilitate payments to a different woman, Karen McDougal, who wanted to tell media outlets that she had an affair with the former president. Pecker allegedly paid McDougal not to speak about the affair, which prosecutors claim directly relates to the payments to Stormy Daniels.
Pecker reportedly wasn’t reimbursed by Trump for the payments to McDougal, prompting him to refuse to pay Daniels once she began threatening to expose her affair with the former president. Pecker’s refusal allegedly prompted Michael Cohen to pay Daniels, resulting in the scandal making national headlines. Despite his alleged involvement in the hush money payments, Pecker won’t face any criminal charges, as federal authorities provided him immunity in return for information about the payments.
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