Dominion Voting Systems’ $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Newsmax is set to go to trial in late September 2024, according to a decision made by Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis. Dominion filed the lawsuit against Newsmax in August 2021, following the network’s promotion of false claims that Dominion rigged the 2020 election against then-President Donald Trump by flipping millions of votes to Joe Biden.
The trial will bring Trump’s lies about the 2020 election to the forefront during the closing weeks of the 2024 election, unless an out-of-court settlement is reached. Judge Davis previously presided over a similar defamation case brought by Dominion against Fox News, which resulted in a $787 million settlement in April 2022, the largest publicly known defamation settlement in US history.
Dominion’s lawsuit against Newsmax seeks $1.6 billion in damages. The allegations stem from Newsmax broadcasts that falsely claimed Dominion “has a long history of rigging elections,” its software “altered and flipped” votes in the 2020 election, and that the “entire election was hacked” in Biden’s favor. Trump allies, including Sidney Powell, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Lindell, and Patrick Byrne, who are facing their own defamation lawsuits, peddled these false claims on Newsmax.
Newsmax is not only facing a defamation suit from Dominion but also from Smartmatic, another voting technology company accused by right-wing figures of rigging the 2020 election. Newsmax has defended itself against the lawsuits, arguing that it was accurately reporting on statements made by Trump and his attorneys. The network claims that its coverage included a disclaimer in late 2020 stating that there was “no evidence” that Dominion or Smartmatic “manipulated votes” in the election.
The trial between Dominion and Newsmax will likely draw significant attention, as it will examine the impact of false election claims on the public discourse and the responsibilities of media organizations in disseminating accurate information. It remains to be seen how the trial will unfold and if it will result in another large-scale settlement or a precedent-setting judgment.
Original Story at www.cnn.com – 2023-09-18 21:57:00
