Re: Dominion voting machines demands pro-Trump attorney Sidn
Posted: Sun Mar 28, 2021 4:10 am
Fox News Sued By Dominion Voting For Defamation Over Election Conspiracy
by Alison Durkee
Forbes Staff
Mar 26, 2021,06:44am EST
Updated Mar 26, 2021, 10:01am EST
NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT
TOPLINE
Dominion Voting Systems filed a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit Friday against Fox News taking aim at the network for spreading false claims about its voting machines to improve its ratings, marking the fourth lawsuit the voting company has filed over a false election fraud conspiracy theory involving the machines that has gained traction on the far right.
KEY FACTS
• Dominion’s voting machines are at the heart of a right-wing conspiracy theory alleging they fraudulently flipped votes from then-President Donald Trump to Joe Biden, which there is no credible evidence to support but has been pushed by Trump allies, including on Fox News.
• “Fox set out to lure viewers back—including President Trump himself—by intentionally and falsely blaming Dominion for President Trump’s loss by rigging the election,” the lawsuit, filed in state court in Delaware, alleges.
• “At a minimum, Fox recklessly disregarded the truth” about its machines, Dominion alleges, noting that while some broadcasters on the network did call out the conspiracy theory as unsubstantiated, those statements “make Fox’s actions worse” by showing how the network pushed the claims despite knowing they were false.
• Dominion alleges the false election fraud narrative was beneficial to Fox’s ratings and bottom line, noting Fox Corporation’s stock had “rebounded to its pre-election value” after a month of promoting the voting machine claims.
• The lawsuit takes aim at claims spread on the network by such anchors as Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity but does not name them as defendants, with attorneys saying on a press call Friday, “Ultimately, the buck stops with Fox.”
• Dominion sent multiple letters to Fox News asking them to retract their false election claims, but allege the network did not respond and instead “double[d] down” on the conspiracy theory, going “right back on the attack against Dominion” on Jeanine Pirro’s program the day after the first letter was sent.
CRUCIAL QUOTE
“The truth matters. Lies have consequences. Fox sold a false story of election fraud in order to serve its own commercial purposes, severely injuring Dominion in the process,” the lawsuit alleges. “If this case does not rise to the level of defamation by a broadcaster, then nothing does.”
CHIEF CRITIC
“FOX News Media is proud of our 2020 election coverage, which stands in the highest tradition of American journalism, and will vigorously defend against this baseless lawsuit in court,” the company said in a statement to Forbes.
KEY BACKGROUND
The lawsuit follows previous Dominion lawsuits against pro-Trump attorneys Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, and comes after Smartmatic also sued Fox News and several of its anchors—as well as Powell and Giuliani—regarding claims against their machines. (Fox News has moved to dismiss the Smartmatic lawsuit and denied those allegations as well.) The false election claims have significantly impacted Dominion’s business, the company alleges, noting that states have backed down from contracts with the company over the effect of the election fraud theory. Dominion alleges state legislators in states including Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania have all expressed a desire to “reassess” their contracts with Dominion. “They have done so because of pressure from constituents and donors as a direct result of the lies peddled by Fox,” the company said in the lawsuit.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Dominion is expected to file additional defamation suits against others who have spread the election conspiracy theory, including potentially other right-wing media networks like Newsmax and One America News. Though the company did not name any of Fox’s individual anchors in the lawsuit, it has sent letters to many of them demanding they retract their claims, and attorneys told reporters Friday they were still exploring whether to bring subsequent lawsuits against specific anchors.
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After Lawsuit Against Fox News, Here's Who Dominion Has Sued So Far -- And Who Could Be Next
by Alison Durkee
Forbes Staff
Mar 26, 2021,01:10pm EST
TOPLINE Dominion Voting Systems sued Fox News Friday accusing the network of defamation, in the fourth lawsuit it has filed over baseless election fraud claims about the company’s voting machines. Here’s everyone who has been sued so far, and who could face litigation next:
KEY FACTS
• Denver-based Dominion filed a $1.6 billion lawsuit against Fox News alleging the network had knowingly spread false news about its machines to improve failing ratings, saying they had “set out to lure viewers back...by intentionally and falsely blaming Dominion” for President Donald Trump’s loss.
• The company filed its first lawsuit in January against pro-Trump attorney Sidney Powell, who has been the most prominent person spreading the fraud claims, seeking $1.3 billion in damages.
• It filed suit later in the month against Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, alleging he used the conspiracy theory about Dominion’s machines to personally “enrich himself” while knowing the claims were false.
• Dominion made similar allegations against MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, suing the businessman and his company in February and claiming Lindell “sells the lie” involving the company’s voting machines “because the lie sells pillows.”
• Dominion has identified more than 150 people as potential targets of litigation, and it has sent letters to preserve evidence and warning of potential litigation to Newsmax, One America News and right-wing figures including pro-Trump attorney Lin Wood, Fox News anchors and Melissa Carone, who Giuliani has promoted as a witness to supposed voter fraud efforts.
• The company sent letters to social media networks in February asking them to preserve posts from Trump and his campaign, as well as from Trump allies including former Trump advisor Michael Flynn, Fox anchor Jeanine Pirro, Trump campaign attorney Jenna Ellis and far-right political commentator Dan Bongino.
Dominion’s attorneys told reporters Friday the company is continuing to investigate claims made against it by other individuals and media networks on the right, and they anticipate more lawsuits may be coming. “I don’t think this is gonna be the last lawsuit filed,” attorney Stephen Shackelford said. Though the company named only Fox News as a defendant in their lawsuit Friday and not individual anchors like Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity who spread the claims, Dominion’s counsel said they “have not ruled out” bringing subsequent lawsuits against individual Fox personalities. The company has also not ruled out suing other media outlets like Newsmax and OAN.
CHIEF CRITICS
Those sued have largely remained defiant: Fox News said in a statement Friday the company “is proud of our 2020 election coverage” and would “vigorously defend” themselves against the litigation, Giuliani said the lawsuit against him was “another act of intimidation by the hate-filled left-wing” and Lindell said he “welcomed” Dominion’s lawsuit, telling Forbes before it was filed, “Dominion, please sue me.” Powell’s attorneys filed a motion to dismiss her lawsuit this week, which alleged her statements about the company should not be taken seriously and “reasonable people would not accept such statements as fact.” It is a “well recognized principle that political statements are inherently prone to exaggeration and hyperbole,” Powell’s attorneys argued.
KEY BACKGROUND
Dominion’s voting machines are at the heart of a right-wing conspiracy theory alleging they were used to fraudulently flip votes from Trump to Joe Biden, which is not substantiated by evidence. Dominion says that the claims have substantially hurt its business and put its employees in danger. The voting company controls about 30% of the U.S. market, according to data cited by ProPublica in 2019—making it the second-largest business of its kind in the country—and said in its Fox News lawsuit that it has contracts with 28 states. Business analytics firm Dun & Bradstreet estimated the company’s 2021 annual revenue will be $40.15 million, though the company alleges it has lost out on state contracts over concerns raised by constituents and Republican lawmakers about the fraud claims, including a $10 million contract in Stark County, Ohio, and a $100 million contract in Louisiana.
TANGENT
In addition to Dominion, rival voting company Smartmatic has also filed a $2.7 billion lawsuit against Powell, Giuliani, Fox News and several of its anchors. Fox News and its personalities have similarly denied the claims in that lawsuit and filed motions to dismiss.
by Alison Durkee
Forbes Staff
Mar 26, 2021,06:44am EST
Updated Mar 26, 2021, 10:01am EST
NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT
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TOPLINE
Dominion Voting Systems filed a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit Friday against Fox News taking aim at the network for spreading false claims about its voting machines to improve its ratings, marking the fourth lawsuit the voting company has filed over a false election fraud conspiracy theory involving the machines that has gained traction on the far right.
KEY FACTS
• Dominion’s voting machines are at the heart of a right-wing conspiracy theory alleging they fraudulently flipped votes from then-President Donald Trump to Joe Biden, which there is no credible evidence to support but has been pushed by Trump allies, including on Fox News.
• “Fox set out to lure viewers back—including President Trump himself—by intentionally and falsely blaming Dominion for President Trump’s loss by rigging the election,” the lawsuit, filed in state court in Delaware, alleges.
• “At a minimum, Fox recklessly disregarded the truth” about its machines, Dominion alleges, noting that while some broadcasters on the network did call out the conspiracy theory as unsubstantiated, those statements “make Fox’s actions worse” by showing how the network pushed the claims despite knowing they were false.
• Dominion alleges the false election fraud narrative was beneficial to Fox’s ratings and bottom line, noting Fox Corporation’s stock had “rebounded to its pre-election value” after a month of promoting the voting machine claims.
• The lawsuit takes aim at claims spread on the network by such anchors as Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity but does not name them as defendants, with attorneys saying on a press call Friday, “Ultimately, the buck stops with Fox.”
• Dominion sent multiple letters to Fox News asking them to retract their false election claims, but allege the network did not respond and instead “double[d] down” on the conspiracy theory, going “right back on the attack against Dominion” on Jeanine Pirro’s program the day after the first letter was sent.
CRUCIAL QUOTE
“The truth matters. Lies have consequences. Fox sold a false story of election fraud in order to serve its own commercial purposes, severely injuring Dominion in the process,” the lawsuit alleges. “If this case does not rise to the level of defamation by a broadcaster, then nothing does.”
CHIEF CRITIC
“FOX News Media is proud of our 2020 election coverage, which stands in the highest tradition of American journalism, and will vigorously defend against this baseless lawsuit in court,” the company said in a statement to Forbes.
KEY BACKGROUND
The lawsuit follows previous Dominion lawsuits against pro-Trump attorneys Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, and comes after Smartmatic also sued Fox News and several of its anchors—as well as Powell and Giuliani—regarding claims against their machines. (Fox News has moved to dismiss the Smartmatic lawsuit and denied those allegations as well.) The false election claims have significantly impacted Dominion’s business, the company alleges, noting that states have backed down from contracts with the company over the effect of the election fraud theory. Dominion alleges state legislators in states including Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania have all expressed a desire to “reassess” their contracts with Dominion. “They have done so because of pressure from constituents and donors as a direct result of the lies peddled by Fox,” the company said in the lawsuit.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Dominion is expected to file additional defamation suits against others who have spread the election conspiracy theory, including potentially other right-wing media networks like Newsmax and One America News. Though the company did not name any of Fox’s individual anchors in the lawsuit, it has sent letters to many of them demanding they retract their claims, and attorneys told reporters Friday they were still exploring whether to bring subsequent lawsuits against specific anchors.
****************************
After Lawsuit Against Fox News, Here's Who Dominion Has Sued So Far -- And Who Could Be Next
by Alison Durkee
Forbes Staff
Mar 26, 2021,01:10pm EST
TOPLINE Dominion Voting Systems sued Fox News Friday accusing the network of defamation, in the fourth lawsuit it has filed over baseless election fraud claims about the company’s voting machines. Here’s everyone who has been sued so far, and who could face litigation next:
KEY FACTS
• Denver-based Dominion filed a $1.6 billion lawsuit against Fox News alleging the network had knowingly spread false news about its machines to improve failing ratings, saying they had “set out to lure viewers back...by intentionally and falsely blaming Dominion” for President Donald Trump’s loss.
• The company filed its first lawsuit in January against pro-Trump attorney Sidney Powell, who has been the most prominent person spreading the fraud claims, seeking $1.3 billion in damages.
• It filed suit later in the month against Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, alleging he used the conspiracy theory about Dominion’s machines to personally “enrich himself” while knowing the claims were false.
• Dominion made similar allegations against MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, suing the businessman and his company in February and claiming Lindell “sells the lie” involving the company’s voting machines “because the lie sells pillows.”
• Dominion has identified more than 150 people as potential targets of litigation, and it has sent letters to preserve evidence and warning of potential litigation to Newsmax, One America News and right-wing figures including pro-Trump attorney Lin Wood, Fox News anchors and Melissa Carone, who Giuliani has promoted as a witness to supposed voter fraud efforts.
• The company sent letters to social media networks in February asking them to preserve posts from Trump and his campaign, as well as from Trump allies including former Trump advisor Michael Flynn, Fox anchor Jeanine Pirro, Trump campaign attorney Jenna Ellis and far-right political commentator Dan Bongino.
Dominion’s attorneys told reporters Friday the company is continuing to investigate claims made against it by other individuals and media networks on the right, and they anticipate more lawsuits may be coming. “I don’t think this is gonna be the last lawsuit filed,” attorney Stephen Shackelford said. Though the company named only Fox News as a defendant in their lawsuit Friday and not individual anchors like Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs and Sean Hannity who spread the claims, Dominion’s counsel said they “have not ruled out” bringing subsequent lawsuits against individual Fox personalities. The company has also not ruled out suing other media outlets like Newsmax and OAN.
CHIEF CRITICS
Those sued have largely remained defiant: Fox News said in a statement Friday the company “is proud of our 2020 election coverage” and would “vigorously defend” themselves against the litigation, Giuliani said the lawsuit against him was “another act of intimidation by the hate-filled left-wing” and Lindell said he “welcomed” Dominion’s lawsuit, telling Forbes before it was filed, “Dominion, please sue me.” Powell’s attorneys filed a motion to dismiss her lawsuit this week, which alleged her statements about the company should not be taken seriously and “reasonable people would not accept such statements as fact.” It is a “well recognized principle that political statements are inherently prone to exaggeration and hyperbole,” Powell’s attorneys argued.
KEY BACKGROUND
Dominion’s voting machines are at the heart of a right-wing conspiracy theory alleging they were used to fraudulently flip votes from Trump to Joe Biden, which is not substantiated by evidence. Dominion says that the claims have substantially hurt its business and put its employees in danger. The voting company controls about 30% of the U.S. market, according to data cited by ProPublica in 2019—making it the second-largest business of its kind in the country—and said in its Fox News lawsuit that it has contracts with 28 states. Business analytics firm Dun & Bradstreet estimated the company’s 2021 annual revenue will be $40.15 million, though the company alleges it has lost out on state contracts over concerns raised by constituents and Republican lawmakers about the fraud claims, including a $10 million contract in Stark County, Ohio, and a $100 million contract in Louisiana.
TANGENT
In addition to Dominion, rival voting company Smartmatic has also filed a $2.7 billion lawsuit against Powell, Giuliani, Fox News and several of its anchors. Fox News and its personalities have similarly denied the claims in that lawsuit and filed motions to dismiss.