Carlos Watson Goes Free: A Surprising Coda to the CJR Podcast

Prosecutors weren’t notified in advance, witnesses are in shock—and Watson’s family celebrates his freedom.

On the day that Carlos Watson, the founder of the digital media company Ozy Media, was due to turn himself in to prison last week, to begin serving a nearly ten-year sentence for fraud and identity theft, he and his family received some unexpected good news: President Donald Trump was commuting his sentence.

Susie Banikarim, who attended nearly every day of the trial last year, and cohosted the CJR special podcast series “The Unraveling of Ozy Media,” returns to The Kicker to explain how this wild turn of events came to pass, and what Watson’s family, former employees—and even the prosecutors—have had to say so far.

Read more:

*“The Unraveling of Ozy Media”—a three-part podcast series from CJR, including a special presentation of evidence from the original trial

*“The Sentencing of Carlos Watson”—a report from Watson’s last day in court

Hosted by Josh Hersh
Produced by Amanda Darrach