🚨IMMEDIATE RELEASE🚨 - I Am Being Threatened For Protecting Children...

0:00Ro Khanna:This episode is brought to you by Athletic Brewing Company. No matter how you do game day, on the couch, in the crowd, or manning the snack table, Athletic Brewing fits right in. With a full lineup of non-alcoholic beer styles, you can enjoy bold flavors all game long. No hangovers, no buzz, no subbing out for water in the second half. Stock the fridge for tip-off with a variety of non-alcoholic craft styles available at your local grocery store or online at athleticbrewing.com. Your beer fit for all times. Kayak gets my flight, hotel, and rental car right, so I can tune out travel advice that's just plain wrong.

0:37Elizabeth Phillips:Bro, Skycoin, way better than points.

0:40Ro Khanna:Never fly during a Scorpio full moon. Just tell the manager you'll sue. Instant room upgrade. Stop taking bad travel advice. Start comparing hundreds of sites with Kayak and get your trip right. Kayak, got that right.

0:57Shawn Ryan:I need to talk to you about something serious. Last week, I received a demand letter from lawyers representing CannaCook Ministries, a Christian summer camp in Missouri. They're threatening to sue me for defamation because of something I said on my podcast with Congressman Ro Khanna. Here's what I said. I brought Elizabeth Phillips on my show, and she talked about how CannaCook employees have been molesting thousands of kids for years and putting them under NDAs after settlements so they can never come out and talk about their sexual abuse and trauma. CannaCook's lawyers are demanding I take down that portion of the interview, issue a public apology, and stop talking about this.

1:44Shawn Ryan:They gave me 10 days. That deadline has passed. Here's my response. No, I don't negotiate with pedophiles or the people who defend them. I'm not taking anything down. I'm not apologizing, and I'm damn sure not going to stop talking about child sexual abuse at a Christian camp that continues to operate on the same grounds where horrific abuse took place. Let me be crystal clear about the facts. Facts that Canacook's own lawyers admitted in their letter. One, Pete Newman, a senior Canacook employee and camp director, sexually abused children at Canacook for multiple years in the early 2000s. He's now serving life sentences.

2:38Shawn Ryan:Two, between 20 and 30 civil lawsuits were filed against Canna Cook. Three, multiple confidential settlement agreements were executed with victims, NDAs that prevented these kids from speaking publicly about what happened to them. Canna Cook can't prove the number is less than thousands. And given their own admission of a cover-up, the true number is unknowable. But here's what really pisses me the fuck off. Canacook is still operating a camp at the very location where countless children suffered horrific abuse. They're still running programs. They're still bringing kids to the exact same place.

3:21Shawn Ryan:And now they want to silence me for talking about it. This isn't about protecting their reputation. This is about protecting children. And I will not be silenced. My attorney has sent Canacook's lawyers a response. We've made it clear. If they want to sue me, bring it on. We welcome discovery. We welcome depositions of CannaCook leadership about what they knew, when they knew it, and what they did or didn't do to protect children. We welcome full disclosure of every abuse allegation, every settlement, every internal investigation, in every financial record showing whether Canacook actually suffered any harm from my statement or whether this is just an attempt to intimidate people into silence.

4:10Shawn Ryan:Under Tennessee law, Canacook will have to prove I'm lying. They'll have to prove actual malice, that I knew my statements were false or that I had serious doubts about its truth. They can't do that because I relied on Elizabeth Phillips. whose brother was a victim. I relied on public court records, relied on widespread media coverage of Pete Newman's prosecution, and most importantly, they admit the core of what I said is true. Cannecook employees sexually abused children. Victims were silenced by confidentiality agreements. That's not defamation. That's the truth. I want to say something directly to survivors.

4:57Shawn Ryan:I see you. I believe you. And I will not stop fighting for you. Sexual abuse at youth camps, especially Christian camps that are supposed to be safe places, is a matter of urgent public concern. Parents have a right to know. Kids have a right to be protected. And survivors have a right to speak. Canna Cook's attempt to use legal threats to silence reporting on child sexual abuse in itself is newsworthy, and I'm going to keep reporting on it. To Canna Cook, you want to talk about callous and malicious disregard for the truth? Let's talk about operating a camp where a predator had access to thousands of children for years.

5:45Shawn Ryan:Let's talk about confidentiality agreements that silenced traumatized kids. Let's talk about continuing to operate on a crime scene. You're not the victim here. The children you failed to protect are the victims. I stand by every word I said. I will not retract. I will not apologize. And if you want to sue me, my lawyers are ready. To everyone watching, this is why I do this show. This is why we tell real stories about real people because the truth matters because kids matter and because some things are more important than money or reputation. If you want to support survivors of institutional child sexual abuse, check out No More Victims, the organization Elizabeth Phillips founded.

6:39Shawn Ryan:They're passing laws to protect kids and hold institutions like CannaCook accountable. And if you're a survivor, please know it's not your fault. You deserve justice and there are people fighting for you. I'll keep you updated as this develops, but I'm not going to be backing down.

7:05Shawn Ryan:Hey, Jeremy, what's the name of that law firm? Hush Blackwell. Hush Blackwell. I wonder how many pedophiles they've defended. That'd be an interesting piece of information to know.

7:18Elizabeth Phillips:Thought Sweetgreen was just salads? Think again. There's a new way to do Sweetgreen. Wrapped and ready. These handheld wraps pack bold flavor and 40 plus grams of protein into something hearty, satisfying, and built for life on the go. From craveable sauces to satisfying textures. They're designed to keep you going without slowing you down. So put that fork down. Try the new wraps today in app or at order.sweetgreen.com. Available at participating locations only.