this is "nightline." tonight, subject of scandal. a rising congresswoman r resigning, saying she's the victim of revenge porn. >> some people call this electronic assault, digital exploitation. others call it revenge porn. >> california democrat date kate eye hi hill. >> inside the launched most often against women. plus, the balloon boy. authorities say it was the hoax that took the nation along for a ride, with claims of a boy stuck in a homemade balloon. >> it's a flying saucer. >> yes. >> now ten years later all

grown-up and speaking out with his parents. >> balloon boy, anybody ever throw that at you these days? >> yeah, a lot. >> the family's attempt to set record straight on their infamous past. >> do you feel a sense still that you need to clear your name? >> but first, the "nightline" five.

good evening. thanks for joining us. tonight one former lawmaker now waging a new campaign. katie hill is finding herself in the center of a scandal, after leaked intimate photos and allegations of an affair with a staff member surfaced. hill's departure now shining a light on what she calls revenge porn. >> this coordinated campaign carried out by the right wing media and republican opponents, enabling and perpetuating my husband's abuse by providing him a platform is disgusting and unforgivable, and they will be held accountable. >> reporter: california representative, katie hill, a rising star in the democratic party now tarnished, resigning in the face of what hill calls a campaign of revenge porn. >> i made this decision so that my supporters, my family, my staff and our community will no longer be subjected to the pain inflicted by my abusive husband and the brutality of hateful

political operatives. >> reporter: intimate photos showing hill with a female staffer were published on the "daily mail". alleging that she was involved go a thruple. >> she has accused her husband of being abusive and running a quote, smear campaign against her by leaking nude photos of her with this campaign staffer with whom she had this sexual relationship. >> reporter: "red state" also alleged that hill had been involved in a second affair with her current legislative director, which would violate house ethics rules. hill has denied those allegations. >> i think she's being treated fairly in that her behavior was unbecoming of a member of congress. i think her constituents were probably not okay with the behavior. >> congresswoman hill was facing a house ethics committee investigation over allegations

she had a sexual relationship with a member of her staff. >> reporter: her ousting serves as a major blow to her party. she was a member of "the big six". six of the promising new freshmen in congress. >> she was one of the women who came into office in 2018 and had the position of vice chair of the house oversight committee, which is a really important committee, particularly in this impeachment inquiry. >> reporter: the openly bisexual congresswoman garnered support of her constituents and celebrities alike. >> katie has been an advocate for people her whole career. >> reporter: but her once-promising career now derailed amidst a failing marriage. >> i never thought mayim perfections would be weaponized to dero

now it's tim to get back toyou d incumbent, steve knight. >> katie hill was part of the blue wave that delivered the house in the democrats hands. the question now is whether they can hold onto that seat. >> reporter: hill's defender says there is a sexist double standard. duncan hunter has been indicted on using campaign funds for affairs with five women. >> the difference between hunter and hill is that katie hill doesn't have a father who was a well-known, well-respected member of congress whose seat she took over and whose name recognition is extremely high and popular in the district. >> reporter: in a statement, she said it was politically motivated and remains politicalry motivated now. >> i will not allow myself to be a distraction from the

constitutional crisis we're faced with. so i have to take my personal fight outside the house of congress. >> reporter: she's dedicating herself to fighting revenge porn on behalf of countless others. it remains unclear as to who leaked the photos to the media. hill's husband's attorney did not respond to requests for comments. >> some people call this digital exploitation. others call it revenge porn. as the victim of it, i call it one of the worst things we can do to our sisters and daughters. >> because she lost her career based on these images, she has a case against whoever shared these images with the press. >> reporter: this attorney specializes in revenge porn cases. give me an example of how revenge porn cases are growing. >> five years ago we would get one phone call every three months, now we get a phone call a day. there's an epidemic of revenge

porn cases now. >> reporter: and more often than not, the victims are women. >> they are. rrp he says he's tracked down offenders from all walks of life. >> police officers, members of the armed forces, members of local churches. this is a crime that every day people are the criminals in. >> reporter: but he says a national law would help revenge porn survivors who often face an uphill legal battle, in part because laws against it vary dramatically from state the to state. >> the problem is the area of law is so new and the statutes haven't been fleshed out the way they should. congresswoman hill is from california, there's a strong statute. but unfortunately, a lot of states aren't as strong as those two hrom the only alleged victim in recent years. the digital smears in trapping celebrities and every day citizens alike. nearly 10 million americans, one

in 25, have been threatened or the victim of revenge porn. >> i saw these links, and then clicked on this video and realized that i'd been assaulted. >> reporter: perhaps no one knows the challenges facing victims better than youtube star chrissy chambers, whose year-long odyssey paved the way for survivors. at 18 years old, chrissy says her ex-boyfriend secretly taped himself having sex with her when she was passed out drunk before releasing the video in 2018. >> it was a horrific pain. my world came crashing down. >> reporter: chrissy says she didn't know she was being filmed at the time and only found out about the tape from disturbing messages left by her own followers. at the time, abc news made repeated attempts to reach out to her alleged offender but never heard back. >> it was single-handedly, probably one of the hardest moments of my life. i literally collapsed on the floor.

>> reporter: chrissy's road to justice was difficult, since it was posted in the uk before revenge porn laws were on the books there. she was unable to pursue criminal charges. >> it was like stumbling in the dark. they would say i'm so sorry this happened to you, but we can't help. >> reporter: her journey meticulously documented on her and her partner's youtube channel. >> this is what we've been going through for two years now. >> reporter: moments after she gave her police report, chrissy spoke to "the guardian". >> what they have now is not enough. the it's just not enough. and's ruining people's lives. im'going to fight and continue to fight to not let it ruin mine. >> reporter: despite the setback, chrissy eventually won a landmark civil case against her offender, the first of its kind in the uk. >> you can sue, you can make sure something happens to the person that's done this to you. we get a lot of phone calls from

people who believe there's nothing they can do at this point, especially younger people. that's not true. >> reporter: chrissy celebrated by proposing to her long-time partner on the courthouse steps. but for congresswoman hill, her future remains to be seen. >> i grew up riding horses. the most important thing i learned is when you fall off you have to get right back up in the saddle. i'm going to do that. i hope i can count on to you do the same and join me on the next ride. coming up, the stunt that stunned the country. now one on one with "balloon boy", and his parents, ten years after that controversial incident ♪ things are getting clearer, yeah i feel free ♪ ♪ to bare my skin ♪ yeah that's all me. ♪ nothing and me go hand in hand ♪ ♪ nothing on my skin ♪ that's my new plan. ♪ nothing is everything. keep your skin clearer with skyrizi. 3 out of 4 people achieved

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it was a scary sight to behold. a homemade silver saucer, drifting across the sky ten years ago. the country gripped in fear and fascination, after claims that a child was on board. but he was not. balloon boy, living on, speaking out with his parents about the incident that captivated the nation. >> reporter: you may not remember 16-year-old nibu y'l rememb story. >> we're going to turn to colorado and that balloon flight. >> they tracked it two hours. >> balloon boy, anybody ever throw that at you these days? >> yeah, a lot. >> reporter: but you're laughing about it. the it happens a lot? >> yeah. >> reporter: what's your

reaction to it? >> just like, ah. >> reporter: falcon says he doesn't remember much about the incident that earned him that nickname, but his dad certainly does. surely you know this is not some little it story that was going to go away, you know that, right? >> afterwards, you know, after the fact. it just never dawned on me, talking to pierce. i mean, actually, we didn't have a tv hooked up. so i had no idea what's going on. >> reporter: ten years ago, millions were glued to their tvs, watching as this giant balloon drifted across the colorado sky. >> the search is under way for not the have climbed into a homemade helium balloon. >> reporter: it audiences, with wall to wall coverage.

the incident an emergency, falcon's life was in danger. his father, richard, an inventor, who built the balloon himself, sounding frantic on this 911 call. >> are you sure he's in that? >> yeah, we, we looked everywhere, and my son just said he verified. it wasn't supposed to take off. >> three, two, one! >> reporter: the family had been recording the saucer seen here in this home video just moments before that 911 call. the colorado national guard was put on alert. helicopters at the ready. flights around the area diverted. after nearly two hours, that flying saucer started losing its lift. >> five, four, three,b the ball the ground. he just touched the ground. >> reporter: it dropped into a field some50 mil 50 miles from hinis' home.

>> i'm going to say this kid is going to blanding. >> reporter: but, as it turned out, falcon was never in the balloon to begin with. instead, he'd been hiding in the attic at home. later that evening, the hinis talked to cnn. and when falcon was asked why he hid, the little boy said this. >> we did this for a show. >> what do you mean we did this for the show? >> um, i have no idea. >> reporter: that interview sparked speculation over whether the whole thing was an act. authorities began calling it a hoax. at the time, saying the hinis who had reportedly been shopping a reality show and had already been on "wife swap" staged the shot to gauge fame. >> they insisted it was not staged. but eventually pled guilty related charges and served minimal jail time.

mayumi did confess but says only out of fear. >> reporter: did you think you could lose your kids in all this? >> yes, i did. >> reporter: you thought somebody would actually take your boys away from you after all this? >> i thought i'm going to be deported. the then then i won't see my husband or kids. i won't be able to see them. so my focus was to hold the family together. >> reporter: the family now lives in florida. richard still maintains that it wasn't a hoax and says he was a victim of character assassination. how, after you stack all of that stuff, throw in the interview that was on cnn with wolf blitzer, you throw all that together with the background you have. why wouldn't people go -- >>epte>> reporter: what is it go

take to change public opinion that you know is still out there. >> mm-hm. >> reporter: about what happened ten years ago. >> what would be nice is if the media could go, richard's got a point, but it's so biassed, okay. the media continues on with the same narrative. >> reporter: and all these years later? do you feel a sense, still, that you need to clear your name? >> oh, most definitely. >> reporter: still, ten years later? >> yeah. >> reporter: how is that important to you? >>ive alo i've lost a lot of opportunities. people contacted me about things i invented and the deal went south because they find out who i am. the thing that gets me is the media never tells my side of the story. >> reporter: he says it's been a learning experience for his family. how has it impacted you all. >> oh, man, it's had a very positive effect. very positive. i closed off our family to the outside world. and i just said, you know, we're going to go to home schooling. we're going to go do activities

together, and i'm going to be the guy that spends time with them. >> reporter: it sounds like you're saying the incident made you a tighter-knit family. >> yes, we are definitely a tighter knit family. >> reporter: since the incident, the hini boys have started a band. their heavy metal talents on display in this 2014 music video for a song aptly titled "no hoax". >> we don't want to associate ourselves with that. we just want to rock out. >> reporter: do you have any current tv or reality show opportunities in the works? >> no. >> reporter: would you take an opportunity? a reality show, any tv opportunity? or would you rather get out of the spotlight at this point, given what the spotlight has done to you >> yeah, i don't want to be in the spotlight. i'm sitting here with you with a light in my face because of this. t now my boys, t plin' music. any oor come

down the pike, i hope it's for them. >> reporter: for "nightline," i'm tj holmes, in archer, florida. up next, the priceless wedding moment. no words. ♪ lost in the moment ♪ and each other's face i thought i was managing my moderate to severe ulcerative colitis. but i realized something was missing... me. the thought of my symptoms returning was keeping me from being there for the people and things i love most. so, i talked to my doctor and learned humira can help get, and keep, uc under control when other medications haven't worked well enough. and it helps people achieve control that lasts so you could experience few or no symptoms. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, as have blood, liver, andave nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb.

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finally tonight, he's the father of the bride, with a lot to say. after a bad accident a couple of years ago, the bride, ali keyman wasn't able to speak, and she communicated through sign language. her dad mitch could only write back on a whiteboard, but now, as he gave away his little girl, no words were necessary. ♪ look at the two of you ♪ dancin' that way >> reporter: dad learning to sign the song "i loved her first", by heartland. and the bride's tears of joy say everything. ♪ like there's nobody else in the world ♪

>> the language of love. that's "nightline." you can always catch our full episodes on hulu. thanks for staying up with us. goodnight, america.