Sullivan,” Fox News Media said in one such recent statement.īut if Florida Republicans get their way, those protections would be eroded. “Despite the noise and confusion generated by Dominion and their opportunistic private equity owners, the core of this case remains about freedom of the press and freedom of speech, which are fundamental rights afforded by the Constitution and protected by New York Times v. In public statements, the network has repeatedly insisted it is protected by the precedent set in that case. Sullivan five times in its March 7 court filing asking for a summary judgment. ![]() Dominion in its lawsuit has alleged Fox “recklessly disregarded the truth” during its 2020 presidential election coverage by pushing various pro-Trump conspiracies about the company’s voting technology.įox attorneys cited New York Times v. The decision has been a bedrock of US media law since the case was decided in 1964, protecting news outlets from expensive lawsuits for mistakes made during the course of reporting by requiring plaintiffs to prove the reporter or outlet demonstrated “actual malice” when publishing erroneous information about a public figure.įox News has leaned heavily on the ruling in defending itself from Dominion Voting Systems’ $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit. Sullivan, which created a higher barrier for public figures to sue for defamation. The legislation as introduced takes direct aim at the landmark US Supreme Court ruling in New York Times v. “This bill has the potential to stifle, if not shut down, center right media and conservative talk radio.” “I understand the emotion behind this bill, but you cannot legislate on emotion and this bill is a sword that will cut both ways,” said Trey Radel, a former Republican colleague of DeSantis in the US House who hosts a weeknight radio show on a Florida Fox News affiliate. Among the most vulnerable, opponents have said, could be the media organizations that have done the most to promote DeSantis amid his ascent in the GOP. The legislation, fashioned to punish media outlets over their coverage of conservatives, would turn the state into a battleground over the future of the First Amendment.īut in doing so, DeSantis has sparked warnings from the right that his attempts to target the mainstream media will result in headaches for conservative outlets as well. ![]() Ron DeSantis, is trying to gut the free speech protections that may ultimately save the network from financial ruin.ĭeSantis and his GOP allies in the state legislature have proposed a sweeping overhaul to defamation laws here that would make it far easier to sue news organizations in Florida. ![]() As Fox News faces legal peril over its coverage of Donald Trump’s 2020 election lies, one of its most featured Republicans, Florida Gov.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |