Fox News Facing Trial with New Rudy Giuliani Recording
Days before the beginning of the $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit trial, a new Rudy Giuliani recording has further complicated Fox News’ defense. This case, brought on by Dominion Voting Systems against Fox News, was due to false election rigging claims broadcasted to millions of people during the 2020 election. Ultimately, the false claims resulted in the defamation of Dominion’s reputation.
Judge Sanctions Fox News
Delaware superior court judge Eric Davis sanctioned Fox News on Wednesday and granted Dominion a chance to gain more evidence, according to a person present during the hearing. Fox had withheld valuable evidence until the eve of the trial and Davis was displeased, saying that it was “troubling.” Because of this, Davis may bring in an outside investigator to review the late disclosure and take any necessary steps to right the wrong.
Evidence Comes from Former Producer
The evidence at hand is recordings made by a former Fox News employee of Giuliani, a lawyer for former President Donald Trump. In the recordings, Giuliani admits to having no evidence to back up the false allegations of election rigging by Dominion. This evidence was disclosed by Abby Grossberg, a former producer at Fox News, in a separate lawsuit against the network.
Fox Responds
Fox responded to the judge’s ruling with a statement that they had “produced the supplemental information” to Dominion “when we first learned it.” They also stated that in Securities and Exchange Commission filings, Rupert Murdoch has been listed as the executive chairman of Fox News since 2019 and this was referenced by a Dominion attorney during Murdoch’s deposition.
Trial Set to Begin
Dominion’s lawsuit against Fox News started in 2021 and jury selection for the trial is set to start today. Davis will likely decide if Dominion needs to conduct new depositions or redo any that have already been done. He stated that Fox must cover the cost of these extra steps to remedy the situation.
The upcoming trial against Fox News, as well as the sanctioning of the network by the judge overseeing the case, will certainly be an important stepping stone to determine the outcome of this lawsuit. The trial is set to begin on Monday, April 26th.