Michael Cohen, the other Michael Cohen - and the Trump-Russia storm

CNN’s Jake Tapper later verified Mr Cohen’s claim and reported that it was a different Michael Cohen who visited had Prague.

The identity of the Michael Cohen in the report remains unknown. Michael was the most popular name in the US in the twentieth century, including in 1966 when the report’s Mr Cohen was allegedly born. The surname Cohen, meanwhile, is one of the most common Jewish surnames in the world.

Other Michael Cohens came out of the woodwork to deny they were the Michael Cohen in question. Boston Globe columnist and noted Trump-hater, Michael A. Cohen, tweeted yesterday “I want to make clear ... it's the other Michael Cohen”. 

Mr Trump echoed his lawyer’s sentiments in a series of tweets yesterday by calling the story “fake news”. He then repeated the accusation at a press conference yesterday and promised that there will be “consequences” for Buzzfeed.

Buzzfeed editor-in-chief Ben Smith defended his decision to publish the unverified report as the “absolutely, right thing to do” and explained that Buzzfeed always errs “on the side of publishing”.