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☆ Fox News apologizes to judge for ‘misunderstanding’ over Rupert Murdoch’s role that sparked investigation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington CNN —Fox News formally apologized to the judge in the Dominion defamation case, taking responsibility for the “misunderstanding” regarding Rupert Murdoch’s role at the network that led the judge to launch an investigation into potential legal misconduct by Fox, according to a letter obtained by CNN. We apologize and never intended to avoid responding to a question from the Court.”The legal spat revolves around Murdoch’s roles at Fox News and its parent company, Fox Corporation. In past court filings, and when asked directly by the judge, Fox lawyers have repeatedly said he didn’t have an official title at Fox News. But last week, Fox disclosed that he is also an executive officer at Fox News. At hearings this past week in Wilmington, Delaware, Fox attorneys said they never withheld any material from Dominion.

Fox has argued that Dominion cherry-picked evidence to mischaracterize the network's coverage decisions, which it said were reasonable because election-rigging claims by the president's lawyers were inherently newsworthy. Fox has said it also gave Dominion's side of the story by airing its denials. The Fox Corp chairman is set to take the witness stand, along with other executives including Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott. The trial is also due to include testimony from a parade of conservative-leaning Fox hosts including Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity and Jeanine Pirro. Fox has attacked the credibility of Dominion's damages estimate, saying it is based upon unrealistic growth projections and faulty assumptions.

☆ Fox News is about to enter the true No Spin Zone
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Good progress was made and the presiding judge noted that there were “more than enough jurors” to start the trial as scheduled on Monday. I’ve watched thousands and thousands of hours of the right-wing channel’s programming. Fox News is about to enter the true No Spin Zone, where deception is strictly prohibited. The case hasn’t even started and the presiding judge has already lost his patience with Fox’s legal team and put them on notice. But if they play out like the last few weeks of court have, Fox News is in for a brutal ride.

☆ Abby Grossberg, ex-Fox News producer, escalates lawsuit against network, adds CEO Suzanne Scott as defendant
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

In explosive lawsuits filed last month, Abby Grossberg claimed Fox lawyers bullied her into protecting the network and its on-air personalities in her deposition for the Dominion Voting Systems’ case. Grossberg now accuses Scott of being complicit in the alleged coercion, according to her amended lawsuit. The network fired Grossberg after she initiated the litigation. The topic of potentially missing or withheld evidence is looming large over the Dominion case. Dominion has said that it plans to call Grossberg as a witness as part of its case against Fox News.

☆ Dominion: Jury selection to begin in defamation trial against Fox News
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Wilmington, Delaware CNN —Jury selection is set to begin Thursday in Dominion Voting Systems’ $1.6 billion defamation trial against Fox News over the right-wing network’s promotion of debunked conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election. The high-stakes trial — which will put a spotlight on Fox’s 2020 election denialism and the role of disinformation in American politics — is expected to last about six weeks. The case revolves around Fox’s decision, after Donald Trump’s loss in the 2020 election, to allow haywire conspiracy theories about Dominion onto its airwaves. Dominion has argued that Fox destroyed its reputation as a trusted voting technology company by repeatedly amplifying these false claims. Fox News says it didn’t defame Dominion and maintains that it is still “proud” of its 2020 election coverage.

☆ Fox News will be investigated for withholding evidence in the Dominion lawsuit, could face sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The judge overseeing the Fox-Dominion defamation case sanctioned the network for withholding evidence. This happened the day after a disclosure that Fox lawyers withheld information about Rupert Murdoch's role at the media company. (AP) — The judge presiding over a defamation case against Fox News said Wednesday he likely will order an independent review to determine whether the network improperly withheld evidence, a step that could lead to sanctions. That came after the disclosure a day earlier that Fox lawyers had withheld critical information about the role company founder Rupert Murdoch, who is chairman of Fox. Dominion alleges that Fox damaged the company by repeatedly airing false allegations that its machines and the software they used rigged the 2020 presidential election to prevent Trump's re-election.

But even if those legal efforts fail and last Friday's order by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas goes into effect, essentially rendering the drug unapproved, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration could nonetheless continue to allow access to the drug, legal experts say. The FDA, which has said it stands behind it determination that mifepristone is safe and effective, declined to comment. CONTRADICTORY RULINGSThe FDA approved mifepristone, which is the first of a two-drug regimen to terminate a pregnancy within the first 10 weeks, in 2000. Kacsmaryk put his ruling on hold until Friday to give the Biden administration, which supports access to abortion, time to pursue its appeal. 1985 PRECEDENTBut, even if the abortion pill's approval remains suspended, the FDA has precedent on its side to do nothing, legal experts said.

☆ Dominion judge likely to appoint special master to investigate if Fox withheld evidence
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

This is very serious,” Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis said Wednesday at a pretrial hearing in Wilmington. The special master will look into what sanctions might be appropriate against Fox, including potentially instructing jurors in the case that Fox inappropriately blocked Dominion from obtaining key evidence. The judge ordered Fox to preserve “any and all communications” related to the Murdoch issue. Fox denies wrongdoing and says it properly disclosed Murdoch’s roles in its public financial filings. Fox attorney Dan Webb said Wednesday that “nobody intentionally withheld information” from Dominion.

On Monday, Fox News and its parent company Fox Corp (FOXA.O) head to trial over Fox's coverage of false election-rigging claims. Fox News had disclaimed that Murdoch was a company officer, which shaped how Dominion litigated the case, according to Nelson. As a Fox News officer, Murdoch would likely have been subject to more probing discovery by Dominion. A Fox lawyer told the hearing in Wilmington, Delaware, that Murdoch disclosed the title in a February deposition and he called the title "honorific." Superior Court Judge Eric Davis called the delayed disclosure "bizarre" and chided Fox attorneys for having made representations that Murdoch wasn't an officer of Fox News, only to reverse on the eve of trial.

☆ Dominion can’t bring up January 6 at Fox News defamation trial, judge rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Wilmington, Delaware CNN —Dominion Voting Systems can’t bring up the January 6 insurrection during its upcoming defamation trial against Fox News, a Delaware judge ruled Tuesday, who also revealed at a hearing that he has been receiving death threats. The judge ruled that Fox can’t bring up broadcasts where reporters accurately fact-checked Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, to prove that other broadcasts that amplified those lies weren’t defamatory. The judge also ruled that Fox can’t use internal Dominion emails where its staffers said their products “suck” and were “riddled with bugs,” to prove that there were real concerns about Dominion machines, and therefore Fox didn’t defame Dominion. The judge overseeing Dominion’s case against Fox News also revealed Tuesday that he has received death threats. If Dominion wins, it wants Fox to pay for the beefed-up security measures that it implemented after 2020.

“Dominion’s defamation claim has nothing to do with the Capitol riot,” Fox’s lawyers argued in the court filings. Depending on how the judge rules, the outcome of these motions could significantly shape the trial, potentially giving one side an advantage. Both Fox and Dominion filed a slew of these pretrial motions last month, but they were under seal. “Fox’s motions attempt to narrow Dominion’s kitchen sink legal approach and return focus to the core issues,” a Fox News spokesperson said in a Thursday statement. Fox has argued that a loss will eviscerate press freedoms, and many scholars agree that the bar should remain high to prove defamation.

☆ Watch CNBC’s full interview with Miller Tabak's Matt Maley and Wilmington Trust's Meghan Shue
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWatch CNBC’s full interview with Miller Tabak's Matt Maley and Wilmington Trust's Meghan ShueMatt Maley, Miller Tabak chief strategist and Meghan Shue, Wilmington Trust head of investment, join 'Closing Bell: Overtime' to discuss this weeks JOLTs report and market reaction.

☆ Dominion can force Murdochs to testify at Fox News defamation trial, judge says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Washington, DC CNN —Dominion Voting Systems can force Fox Corporation executives Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch to testify on the witness stand at this month’s scheduled defamation trial, a Delaware judge said Wednesday. Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis said at a hearing that if Dominion subpoenas the Murdochs to testify in person, he would not quash those subpoenas, and the Murdochs would need to show up. “They are relevant to the case… if Dominion wants to bring them live, they need to issue a trial subpoena, and I would not quash it,” Davis said. He added that “it would be my discretion that they come” to testify in-person at the trial, which is scheduled to begin later this month in Wilmington, Delaware. Fox News denies wrongdoing and says the case is a meritless assault against the First Amendment.

Companies Fox Corp FollowRupert Murdoch FollowWILMINGTON, Del, April 5 (Reuters) - Fox Corp (FOXA.O) executives Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch can be called to testify at this month's defamation trial over a $1.6 billion lawsuit claiming the media company lied about voter fraud in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, a judge said on Wednesday. Rupert Murdoch, the 92-year-old chair of Fox Corp, and his son, Lachlan Murdoch, its CEO, were not on the list of witnesses that Fox intends to make available for the trial, in a case brought by Dominion Voting Systems. Davis said Fox board member Paul Ryan, a former Republican speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, could also be issued a trial subpoena. The judge said there was an objection by Fox to Rupert Murdoch's testimony which would probably have to be resolved at trial. The trial already features a parade of Fox's biggest on-air personalities, including Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity and Maria Bartiromo.

☆ Bad news for the economy is finally bad news for stocks, says Miller's Matt Maley
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBad news for the economy is finally bad news for stocks, says Miller's Matt MaleyMatt Maley, Miller Tabak chief strategist and Meghan Shue, Wilmington Trust head of investment, join 'Closing Bell: Overtime' to discuss this weeks JOLTs report and market reaction.

[1/2] The statue of a scout stands in the entrance to Boy Scouts of America headquarters in Irving, Texas, February 5, 2013. More than a dozen insurers, including Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, have said the Boy Scouts' bankruptcy settlement puts them on the hook for paying "thousands of invalid and questionable claims." The Boy Scouts settlement, approved in bankruptcy court in September, was supported by 86% of abuse claimants and the Boy Scouts' two largest insurers. The Boy Scouts organization said Friday it would oppose any effort to delay bankruptcy exit. The Boy Scouts filed for bankruptcy in February 2020 after several U.S. states enacted laws allowing accusers to sue over decades-old abuse allegations.

On Friday, Trump, who was not charged in his company's case, lashed out at Merchan on his Truth Social platform. "The Judge 'assigned' to my Witch Hunt Case, a 'Case' that has NEVER BEEN CHARGED BEFORE, HATES ME," wrote Trump, who has launched a campaign to regain the presidency in 2024. Merchan has been a Manhattan criminal court judge since 2009 after prior stints on the state's Court of Claims, which hears cases against the state and its agencies, and family court in the Bronx. Merchan presided over the 2012 case of the so-called "Soccer Mom Madam" Anna Gristina, which garnered lurid headlines in the New York media. Gristina sued Merchan in 2021 to unseal records in her case as part of an effort to vacate her record.

Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis denied motions from Fox and partially granted Dominion motions to resolve the issue of defamation liability ahead of the scheduled April 17 trial date. The ruling puts the high-profile case in the hands of a jury that will determine whether Fox acted with actual malice and whether Dominion suffered any damages. The judge ruled in Dominion's favor on some elements of defamation including that the allegedly defamatory statements by Fox concerned Dominion, that the statements had been published by Fox and were false. Davis, however, said in his ruling the doctrine would not shield Fox from liability, because the network did not conduct disinterested reporting. Fox faces a similar lawsuit by voting-technology company Smartmatic, which is seeking $2.7 billion in damages from Fox Corp, the cable network, Fox hosts and guests.

☆ Wall St Week Ahead Resilient U.S. stocks failing to factor in recession, investors fear
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Lewis Krauskopf | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

NEW YORK, March 31 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks have soldiered on through a banking mess to notch solid first-quarter gains. Some investors say that performance could come under pressure if a widely expected recession hits. Wary investors say those gains leave stocks more vulnerable to an economic downturn, which may have been brought closer by tumult in the banking sector following this month’s collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. S&P 500 earnings for the first quarter are estimated to have fallen 5% from the prior year, followed by an expected 3.9% drop in the second quarter, Refinitiv data shows. Nathan Shetty, head of multi-asset at Nuveen, believes current valuations show investors have yet to price in a recession.

Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis denied motions from Fox and partially granted Dominion motions to resolve the issue of defamation liability in each side's favor - summary judgment - ahead of the scheduled April 17 trial date. A jury will determine whether Fox acted with actual malice and whether Dominion suffered any damages, according to the ruling. The judge ruled in Dominion's favor on some elements of defamation including that the allegedly defamatory statements by Fox concerned Dominion, that the statements had been published by Fox and were false. Fox faces a similar lawsuit by voting-technology company Smartmatic, which is seeking $2.7 billion in damages from Fox Corp, the cable network, Fox hosts and guests. Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delawared; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

New York CNN —Dominion Voting Systems’ historic defamation case against Fox News will proceed to a high-stakes jury trial next month, a Delaware judge ruled Friday, declining to declare a pretrial winner. But in his Friday ruling, Davis said that the evidence Dominion presented shows Fox News aired falsehoods about the company. “The evidence developed in this civil proceeding demonstrates that is CRYSTAL clear that none of the Statements relating to Dominion about the 2020 election are true,” Davis wrote. The on-air statements, from various Fox News hosts after the 2020 election, had accused Dominion of rigging the election by flipping millions of votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden. Incriminating texts and emails have shown how Fox executives, hosts and producers didn’t believe the claims the network was peddling about Dominion.

☆ Dominion’s historic defamation case against Fox News will go to trial, judge rules, in major decision dismantling key Fox defenses
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Marshall Cohen Oliver Darcy | Marshall Cohen | Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

New York CNN —Dominion Voting Systems’ historic defamation case against Fox News will proceed to a high-stakes jury trial in mid-April, a Delaware judge ruled Friday, in a major decision that dismantled several of the right-wing network’s key defenses. Both sides had asked Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis for a pretrial ruling in their favor, declaring them the winner. After thousands of pages of filings and exhibits, and a series of courtroom clashes, Davis decided the case should go to trial. Incriminating texts and emails have shown how Fox executives, hosts and producers didn’t believe the claims the network was peddling about Dominion. Despite what appeared on air, Fox News executives and hosts privately criticized the Trump camp for pushing claims of election fraud.

☆ The biggest malls in America, from the troubled American Dream mall to Florida's alligator-shaped shopping center
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Avery Hartmans | Danni Santana | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Palisades CenterDanni SantanaPalisades Center in West Nyack, New York, opened in March 1998. The four-level shopping mall has 225 stores and 16 sit-down restaurants inside. Palisades Center offers 2 million square feet of leasable store space and is owned by EklecCo NewCo LLC, a division of Pyramid Management Group. Mortgage lender Wilmington Trust is now looking to foreclose on Palisades after EklecCo failed to pay back a $418.5 million loan from 2016 in full, Patch reported last month. Wilmington Trust has filed suit against Pyramid asking the New York Supreme Court to have mall tenants pay rent to the firm directly until Palisades Center is put up for sale.

☆ We are 'cautiously optimistic' on the tech sector, says Wilmington Trust's Meghan Shue
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWe are 'cautiously optimistic' on the tech sector, says Wilmington Trust's Meghan ShueMeghan Shue, head of investment strategy at Wilmington Trust, joins 'Squawk on the Street' to discuss her thoughts on the tech sector and what investors can look at.

Bad for business.”The email to Cooper was revealed as part of Dominion Voting Systems’ $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News. Dominion Voting SystemsIn earlier court filings, the data about the Fox Nation subscriptions had been redacted. The messages underscore the panic that gripped Fox News in the wake of the 2020 election when its viewers rebelled against the channel for accurately calling the election for President Joe Biden. At the time, Powell, Giuliani and host Lou Dobbs were promoting debunked conspiracy theories that Dominion had rigged the 2020 election by flipping millions of votes. fox dominion email Dominion Voting Systems“Any day with Rudy and Sidney is guaranteed gold!” the Dobbs producer wrote.

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