WILMINGTON, Del. — Preliminary arguments are set to start Tuesday in a defamation lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems, accusing Fox News of spreading a dangerous lie that the company rigged the 2020 election.
The civil lawsuit in the Delaware Supreme Court begins greater than two years after Dominion, which sells voting machines and software, first accused Fox of knowingly spreading lies about the company to spice up its rankings.
The network has “intentionally and falsely” blamed Dominion for former President Donald Trump’s loss to President Joe Biden, spreading baseless claims about the company, including that it meddled in voting results, Dominion says.
Fox maintained that on-air statements about Dominion are protected by the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech and the press. The network also argued that Dominion’s lawsuit failed to indicate that the claims were aired with “factual malice”, a requirement to fulfill the legal standard for defamation.
The unusual circumstances of the trial – most defamation cases settle out of court, with little promise of non-public testimony from a parade of media figures – together with a ten-figure damages claim have created a cacophonous media buzz. Nevertheless it’s not clear what impact, if any, the case can have on Fox’s repute or bottom line.
Dominion has also filed defamation lawsuits against Trump’s former lawyer Rudy Giuliani, his former lawyer Sidney Powell, right-wing news networks, and other figures. Smartmatic, one other election technology company, filed similar defamation lawsuits looking for billions of dollars in damages.
But the case against Fox has been in the highlight in recent months – especially after the revelation of diverse private messages and testimonies from top Fox News talent and executives, including Fox Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch and opinion presenter Tucker Carlson.
The announcements solid a shadow of scandal over the legal battle, revealing how some Fox employees and other high-profile personalities reacted behind the scenes to events following the 2020 election. News outlets quickly did so contrast private remarks by some Fox personalities about allegations of electoral fraud with what was being said on the air at the same time.
The process is predicted to take as much as six weeks. But the unexplained delay in proceedings and reports behind-the-scenes negotiations between Fox and Dominion, solid doubt on whether the case will even go to trial.
On Monday, the two sides clashed over how much money is definitely at stake, with Fox stating that Dominion has lowered its damages claim from the original $1.6 billion, and Dominion maintains that “the damages claim stays.”
One a part of the lawsuit has already been settled: Judge Eric Davis last month ruled that statements marked by Dominion were indeed false. “The evidence gathered on this civil proceeding shows that it is obvious to CRYSTAL that none of Dominion’s statements regarding the 2020 election are true,” wrote Davis.
His ruling clarified that the jury would determine who was accountable for publishing the false claims and whether those individuals acted with actual malice. This legal standard means proving that the claims were published knowingly that they’re unfaithful or with reckless disregard for the truth.
The preparation for the trial was already marked by major plot twists that only increased public interest.
A judge ruled earlier this month that Murdoch, 92, and his son, the CEO of Fox Corp. Lachlan Murdoch, could also be forced to testify in court. Other witnesses include Carlson, Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott, Sean Hannity, and other top TV personalities at Fox.
In a pre-trial hearing last week, Davis punished Fox and its parent company for withholding evidence from Dominion during the discovery process, reported NBC News.
In response to NBC, recordings made by former Fox producer Abby Grossberg in 2020 that purportedly show Giuliani and Fox host Maria Bartiromo talking about the voting software weren’t provided to Dominion. Grossberg sued the network last month, claiming she was coerced into giving false testimony in the Dominion case.
A Fox spokeswoman said after questioning that he “provided additional information from Mrs. Grossberg after we became aware of it.”
That is an evolving message. Check for updates.
— Kevin Breuninger applied from Wilmington, Delaware. Lillian Rizzo reported from Englewood Cliffs, Recent Jersey.