Livestreamer Hasan Piker filed a defamation lawsuit against commentator Scott Jennings in federal court Tuesday and wants more than $72 million in damages.
Jennings played a doctored video of Piker and invented a quotation to falsely accuse him of calling for Black Americans to be lynched on “The Scott Jennings Show” podcast in August, the complaint alleges. Jennings also sought to use the manipulated video to criticize Democrats, according to the complaint.
Piker is pursuing claims for defamation per se, defamation by implication, and false light in the US District Court for the District of Columbia.
“Mr. Jennings did not merely mischaracterize something Mr. Piker said,” the complaint says. “He took a false, fabricated, and manipulated video of Mr. Piker, added a made-up quotation that Mr. Piker never uttered, and then made accusations that went beyond even what the manipulated footage purported to show.”
Jennings didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The clip in question is allegedly a “heavily edited” 42-second video from a 2024 Twitch broadcast of Piker’s where he “sarcastically” mocked a commentator’s criminal justice arguments and wasn’t expressing his own views, according to Piker. Jennings allegedly ignored a formal retraction demand made in August and has left the content publicly available.
Jennings knew the statements were false or acted with reckless disregard for the truth, the standard courts require for public figures in defamation cases, the complaint says.
Piker’s seeking at least $27.5 million in compensatory damages and $45 million in punitive damages.
Meier Watkins Phillips Pusch LLP represents Piker.
The case is Piker v. Jennings, D.D.C., No. 1:26-cv-03770, complaint 10/27/26.
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