Russell Brand went on trial Wednesday in London on rape and sexual assault charges dating back as far as 27 years — and the same press corps that tried to cancel him for questioning COVID mandates and war narratives is now lining up to amplify the state's characterization before a single defense witness takes the stand.

The stakes are straightforward: a man who built an independent following after breaking with establishment orthodoxy now faces the full weight of the British state, with legacy outlets eager to cast the prosecutor's opening statement as the final word.

Brand, 51, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, and one count of indecent assault. The charges involve six women and alleged offenses between 1999 and 2009. Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones told jurors at Southwark Crown Court that the six women, who do not know each other, were assaulted in "a hotel room, workplaces, a toilet cubicle in a bar and at (Brand's) home address." She described Brand as having an "indiscriminate and voracious" desire for sexual contact and said "women were simply a means to an end."

"He was ruthless, he was calculating, he was manipulative. And, the prosecution say, he was a sexual predator," Karmy-Jones said.

Both Cable News Network and NBC News led their coverage with the prosecutor's "ruthless sexual predator" line — a characterization, not a conviction. CNN provided the most detail on specific allegations: that Brand raped a woman in a hotel room during the Labour Party's 1999 conference in Bournemouth; tried to drag a woman into a men's bathroom at her office building in 2001; orally raped a woman in a London bar restroom in 2004, telling her "Don't be a spoilsport" when she asked him to stop; kissed and groped a woman at a London radio station in 2004 or 2005; anally raped a 21-year-old fan at his home in 2009; and demanded a massage while pressing his face into a woman's groin during an advertisement recording in 2009.

Karmy-Jones acknowledged that none of the alleged victims reported the assaults at the time, citing guilt, shame, and fear of being blamed. That means every charge rests on allegations between 17 and 27 years old.

Brand denies all charges. In police interviews, he denied ever engaging in nonconsensual sexual activity. Arriving at court Wednesday, he told the press crowd he felt "blessed" and said: "I feel, of course, concerned but hopeful that this process will lead to good outcomes for everybody involved. That's my prayer."

Both outlets noted Brand's shift away from mainstream media in recent years — his relocation to Florida and his large online following built on wellness content, discussions of religious devotion, and, in CNN's phrasing, "conspiracy theories." What neither outlet grappled with is the timing: these allegations span a decade that ended in 2009, yet charges arrived only after Brand became a prominent skeptic of COVID mandates and Western military interventions.

The jury will hear from the accusers later in the trial. Whether Brand gets a fair hearing in a courtroom when the press has already declared its verdict is the open question.