A United States federal judge has ruled that Sean “Diddy” Combs may proceed with defamation claims against cable network NewsNation over a broadcast that suggested he mixed drugs into baby oil to incapacitate alleged sexual assault victims.
The ruling, issued Friday (Sept. 4), denies motions by NewsNation and attorney Ariel Mitchell to dismiss Combs’ $100 million slander lawsuit. A third defendant, Courtney Burgess, has not responded to the claims and faces possible default judgment.
Judge allows baby oil drug claim to proceed#
Mitchell represented Burgess, who says he knows the Bad Boy Records founder and was a witness before the grand jury that charged Combs in 2024 over sex parties known as “freak-offs.” The indictment said Combs kept “more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil” in his home for these events.
Burgess and Mitchell appeared on NewsNation for multiple interviews after Combs’ arrest. In one broadcast, Mitchell said she had done “research” indicating that baby oil could be mixed with drugs before being doused on a sexual assault victim, thereby “lowering her defenses.” Combs alleges in the lawsuit that the claim is scientifically baseless and defamatory.
Judge John P. Cronan wrote in Friday’s order that there is sufficient basis for Combs to allege defamation based on this statement.
“In the view of the Court, it is plausible that anyone who heard such a claim would at the very least entertain serious doubts as to its accuracy.”
Video recording claims partly dismissed against NewsNation#
The judge also allowed Combs to continue suing Mitchell for saying during the NewsNation interviews that Burgess had access to video recordings of Combs engaged in sexual assault, which Combs denies. However, NewsNation cannot be held liable for those statements because the channel provided proper context, the judge ruled.
“NewsNation presented Burgess’s claims as exactly what they were: allegations. The host reminded viewers that Combs ‘has not been convicted of any crimes’ and that ‘everything against him is an allegation until it is proven in a court of law.’”
Next steps and separate NBCUniversal case#
Representatives for Combs, NewsNation and Mitchell did not immediately return requests for comment on Friday’s ruling.
The decision is procedural and does not resolve the merits of the claims. It allows Combs to seek evidence from Mitchell and NewsNation through discovery. The next phase would be a trial unless a settlement is reached.
In a separate defamation lawsuit against NBCUniversal, a judge dismissed Combs’ claims in April over the 2025 Peacock documentary The Making of a Bad Boy after finding it complied with journalistic standards. Combs is appealing that ruling.
Combs is serving a prison sentence for illegal prostitution. He was acquitted at trial of more serious charges alleging that his “freak-off” parties were part of a racketeering and sex-trafficking enterprise. He is scheduled to be released in early 2028.
