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☆ Fox agrees to give more Murdoch docs to Smartmatic in its defamation case
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Fox News has agreed to give voting technology company Smartmatic additional documents about Fox Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch and other senior corporate executives. “We will produce the materials as quickly as we are able to,” Fox lawyer Winn Allen said. These materials will include deposition transcripts and exhibits, apparently from the recently settled defamation case involving Dominion Voting Systems, a Smartmatic lawyer said in court. The monster case pits Smartmatic against Fox News, Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Fox hosts Maria Bartiromo and Jeanine Pirro, and former host Lou Dobbs, who all promoted the baseless lie that Smartmatic rigged the 2020 election. An appeals court recently dropped Fox Corp. as a defendant, but Smartmatic refiled its lawsuit and is trying to re-add the parent company.

☆ Former Fox producer who sued Tucker Carlson alleging a 'sexist' work environment just 1 month before he was ousted has 'mixed feelings' about his departure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A former Fox producer suing Tucker Carlson said his Monday ouster left her with "mixed feelings." Abby Grossberg spoke to MSNBC this week about her ongoing lawsuits against Carlson and Fox. A former Fox News producer who is suing Tucker Carlson and other company executives for running a "sexist" work environment said Carlson's shocking ouster on Monday felt like the deliverance of "partial" justice. So, when she learned that Carlson had been ousted on Monday morning, Grossberg said she was left with "mixed emotions." Grossberg has also alleged that Fox News attorneys coerced her into making false statements in a deposition for the since-settled Dominion lawsuit.

☆ Tucker Carlson leaves Fox News in wake of Dominion defamation settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Right-wing prime-time host Tucker Carlson is leaving Fox News immediately, the cable network announced Monday. "FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways," the company said in a statement Monday. Carlson's program, "Tucker Carlson Tonight," has long been one of Fox's top rated programs. Carlson, 53, was among the Fox hosts and executives who were questioned as part of the Dominion lawsuit. While the Dominion lawsuit was unlikely to affect Fox's business, it was unclear the toll it would take on its programming and hosts.

☆ The Week in Business: A Trial With a Twist
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Marie Solis | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

In an unexpected twist in the courtroom on Tuesday — after jurors had been selected and opening statements delayed — Fox News agreed to a $787.5 million settlement. But even at less than half that amount, the settlement is still one of the largest ever in a defamation case. Caveats released in August said vehicles and plug-in hybrids assembled outside North America were not eligible for the $7,500 credit. The list of eligible vehicles is expected to grow as carmakers fine-tune their supply chains and catch up with demand. When the bank reports its quarterly earnings this week, analysts expect to see an enormous flight of deposits — that is, customers pulling their money from the bank — and losses.

☆ Ted Cruz, one of Trump's staunchest MAGA allies, was begging Fox News behind the scenes to show 'demonstrable facts' and evidence before repeating Trump's 2020 election lies
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ted Cruz was recorded in 2020 urging Maria Bartiromo to make sure she had her facts straight. Cruz told Bartiromo to ensure she had evidence for any election fraud claims aired on Fox News. Cruz later joined several hardline MAGA senators in voting to not certify the 2020 election results. Despite his reservations, in January 2021, Cruz ended up voting not to certify the results of the 2020 election, joining several hardline GOP senators in repeating Trump's election fraud lies. Representatives for Cruz and Fox News did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment sent outside regular business hours.

☆ Fox has more headaches coming after agreeing to pay $787.5 million to settle Dominion's defamation lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

After shelling out $787.5 billion to settle Dominion's lawsuit, Fox has more troubles on the way. Atop the list is a separate lawsuit from Smartmatic, another election technology company that sued Fox News Network and its parent company, Fox Corp., in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election. Smartmatic's defamation lawsuit asks for $2.7 billion in damages and was filed against Fox Corp.; Fox News Network; hosts Jeanine Pirro, Maria Bartiromo, and Lou Dobbs; and Powell and Giuliani. Aside from the Smartmatic case, Fox News has to deal with potential shareholder lawsuits. The overall value of Fox Corp. — which also includes Fox Sports and the streaming service Tubi — is more than $17.6 billion.

☆ Smartmatic could be Fox’s next big problem
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Fox News’ legal battle with Dominion Voting Systems is over. It now has to deal with Smartmatic, which is seeking billions of dollars more than its rival wanted in damages. Dominion wanted “only” $1.6 billion and settled with Fox for $787 million Tuesday. Both lawsuits focus on Fox News’ coverage of the 2020 election, including lies about voter fraud. “Dominion’s litigation exposed some of the misconduct and damage caused by Fox’s disinformation campaign,” Smartmatic lawyer Erik Connolly said in a statement after the settlement.

☆ Opinion | Did Fox News Just Pay for the Privilege of Continued Corruption?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( David French | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

The settlement reflects Fox’s abandonment of even the most minimal journalistic standards. The headline stated that “Fox News Media, Dominion Voting Systems reach agreement over defamation lawsuit,” but it didn’t state the amount of the settlement and instead mainly focused on the judge’s compliments of Fox’s legal team. Some of them, including members of his legal team, made false and unsubstantiated claims against Dominion Voting Systems and are the subject of separate defamation lawsuits. In the meantime, many of the viewers who keep the company so very profitable won’t know anything meaningful about the Dominion settlement or Fox’s lies — because Fox won’t tell them. While this newsletter is admittedly rather bleak even in the face of Fox’s decisive court defeat, the story is far from over.

☆ Smartmatic wants more than Dominion’s $787 million payout, plus a retraction from Fox for its 2020 election lies, lawyer says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

(But in a press release, Fox publicly “acknowledged” that the judge in that case had concluded that all 20 on-air statements that Dominion sued over were false.) “That set down a marker and it’s a marker that we think we should be exceeding,” Connolly said. “The scope of the damage done to Smartmatic is a global scale, because we operate globally… $787 million is a good start. Smartmatic wants $2.7 billion from Fox and other Trump allies that it named in the lawsuit. “We will be ready to defend this case surrounding extremely newsworthy events when it goes to trial, likely in 2025,” a Fox spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday.

☆ Fox Has Settled One Voting Machine Company’s Defamation Case. Another Looms.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Erin Mulvaney | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Photo: Mark Makela/ReutersFox Corp.’s decision to pay $787.5 million to settle a defamation dispute with Dominion Voting Systems gave voting-machine company Smartmatic USA Corp. a potential blueprint for its own case against the conservative media empire, legal experts say. Just like Dominion, Smartmatic is accusing Fox’s news networks of airing defamatory comments about its products in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, including that the voting-machine company helped rig the outcome in favor of Joe Biden. The $2.7 billion lawsuit is pending in New York state court.

April 19 (Reuters) - Fox News on Tuesday disposed of one legal threat with its $787.5 million defamation settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, but the network still faces a $2.7 billion lawsuit from another voting technology company, Smartmatic USA, over its coverage of debunked election-rigging claims. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File PhotoSmartmatic is seeking $2.7 billion in damages from Fox and five individuals, including former Trump lawyers and hosts. Smartmatic alleges in its lawsuit in New York County Supreme Court that the defendants knowingly spread false claims that its software was used to flip votes. Conspiracy theorists erroneously claimed Smartmatic owned Dominion, and the companies mounted similar allegations in their lawsuits. Fox denies the allegations, saying in a recent statement the network had a right to report on highly newsworthy allegations of voter fraud.

"Fox has admitted to telling lies about Dominion that caused enormous damage to my company, our employees and our customers," Poulos said in a statement. Fox anchor Neil Cavuto broke into his news show "Your World" about 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time to report the settlement. In February court filings, Dominion cited a trove of internal communications in which Murdoch and other Fox figures privately acknowledged that the vote-rigging claims made about Dominion on-air were false. Dominion said Fox amplified the untrue claims to boost its ratings and prevent its viewers from migrating to other media competitors on the right. ANOTHER LAWSUIT PENDINGAdding to the legal risks for Fox, another U.S. voting technology company, Smartmatic, is pursuing its own defamation lawsuit seeking $2.7 billion in damages in a New York state court.

☆ Here are the winners and losers of Fox News's $787.5 million settlement with Dominion
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Fox News settled with Dominion on Tuesday, agreeing to pay $787.5 million. The network avoids a potentially embarrassing trial, while Dominion rakes in far more than its worth. Fox News agreed to pay Dominion $787.5 million, the largest public sum in a defamation case. The winnersDominion Voting Systems: Fox News is paying Dominion $787.5 million — which amounts to nearly 10 times what the company is worth, according to an evaluation from 2018. Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell: The former Trump lawyers who made the false statements that were broadcast on Fox News were in no way vindicated by the settlement.

☆ With historic settlement, Rupert Murdoch is paying the price for Trump’s election lies
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The country suffered the consequences of Donald Trump’s election lies on January 6th. And Rupert Murdoch suffered the consequences of those same lies on April 18. But while it is the largest publicly known defamation settlement by a U.S. media outlet ever, the hefty price tag won’t be enough to change Fox News at its core. In some ways it is fitting that the statement Fox News issued as a result of its dishonest conduct was dishonest in and of itself. Outside the embarrassment Fox News would have suffered, the settlement also spared the company and its executives of being bound by the laws of reality during trial.

☆ Fox faces similar defamation case from Smartmatic after Dominion settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Fox Corp. and its TV networks agreed to pay $787.5 million to settle Dominion Voting Systems' defamation lawsuit this week, but the media giant's legal headaches don't end there. Still hanging in the balance is voting software company Smartmatic USA's defamation case, which is seeking $2.7 billion in damages – over $1 billion more than Dominion initially sought in its lawsuit. Smartmatic, like Dominion, filed its defamation lawsuit against Fox for spreading false claims that its voting software helped rig the 2020 election that saw Joe Biden triumph over Donald Trump. Although Smartmatic's lawsuit was filed shortly ahead of Dominion's in 2021, the pace of the case has lagged in comparison. It remains unclear how or whether the settlement between Fox and Dominion will affect Smartmatic's case.

Dominion accused Fox and its parent company Fox Corp (FOXA.O) of ruining its business by airing claims that its machines were used to rig the 2020 U.S. presidential election in favor of Democrat Joe Biden and against then-president Donald Trump, a Republican. Smartmatic alleges in its lawsuit in New York County Supreme Court that the defendants knowingly spread false claims that its software was used to flip votes. Conspiracy theorists erroneously claimed Smartmatic owned Dominion, and the companies mounted similar allegations in their lawsuits. Fox denies the allegations, saying in a recent statement the network had a right to report on highly newsworthy allegations of voter fraud. Fox has said the allegations are “baseless” and were immediately investigated by outside lawyers.

☆ Breakingviews: Fox is not out of the woods yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, April 18 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Rupert Murdoch’s Fox will find that a damaged beast attracts more foes. The media company which operates cable network Fox News settled a defamation lawsuit on Tuesday for approximately half of the $1.6 billion sought in damages by the plaintiff, Dominion Voting Systems. In a statement, Fox acknowledged the court’s ruling “finding certain claims about Dominion to be false.”Fox has some $4 billion in cash, so it can easily scratch a check for the $788 million penalty. And while Fox is flush now, Chief Executive Lachlan Murdoch has noted the company needs more scale, given it’s vulnerable to cord cutters and a tepid advertising environment. The $17 billion Fox has survived this round, yet the hunt is still on.

☆ Fox is not out of the woods yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

☆ 16 takeaways from Fox News' historic $787.5 million settlement with Dominion
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

In the moments after I watched the judge announce the settlement in court, 16 things went through my mind:1. Evidence obtained by Dominion in the lawsuit and filed to court ahead of the settlement appeared to support that theory. There's always the Smartmatic case. In court filings ahead of the settlement, Fox complained about the $1.6 billion price tag Dominion put on the lawsuit. "Would be pretty unreal if you guys like 20x'ed your Dominion investment with these lawsuits," read one text to a Staple Street executive cited in a Fox court filing.

☆ What’s next for Fox and Dominion? More lawsuits seeking accountability for corrosive 2020 election lies
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Marshall Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Wilmington, Delaware CNN —Dominion Voting Systems’ blockbuster defamation case against Fox News is over after the right-wing network cuts a check for a staggering $787 million, but there’s still an avalanche of pending lawsuits that are seeking accountability from the right-wing figures who championed false claims about the 2020 election. Smartmatic, another voting technology company, sued Fox for defamation following the 2020 election and is seeking $2.7 billion in damages from Fox and other defendants. Dominion still has a bevy of pending lawsuits against 2020 election deniers. “All of those decisions will have a huge bearing on those lawsuits as they play out,” Dominion lawyer Davida Brook told CNN Tuesday night. Dominion lawyer Justin Nelson added in a CNN interview that the Fox News settlement “sends a message to the other seven lawsuits that accountability is coming.”

☆ Lawyers for ex-Fox News producer suing for discrimination vow to bring 'meaningful changes' to network after Dominion settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Lawyers for a former Fox News producer vowed to continue their legal fight on Tuesday. Grossberg "remains as committed as ever to obtaining vindication," her lawyers said. Parisis G. Filippatos and Tanvir H. Rhaman, lawyers for Grossberg, suggested Tuesday that she is not eager to settle her case, at least not just yet. The goal, they claimed, is "bringing about truly real and meaningful institutional changes at Fox News through every vehicle available to us in our legal system." In a statement on Tuesday, the election technology company Smartmatic said it "remains committed" to its own $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit against the network.

☆ Fox's $787 million settlement won't restore damage to US democracy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Fox News will pay $787.5 million for transmitting lies that a small voting technology firm helped steal the 2020 election. And Trump himself is facing several criminal probes related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the run-up to the January 6, 2021, insurrection. And is there any chance that Fox’s humiliation can repair some of the damage from the disastrous election aftermath in 2020? That missing moment of accountability will be important because claims that the 2020 election was corrupt are not some artifact of recent history. No single case can repair the damage of 2020The extent to which Trump’s falsehoods and conspiracy theories harmed democracy is open to debate.

☆ Who won the Fox-Dominion case? Lawyers and an obscure private-equity fund
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

That remains true in the case of Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems, which averted a trial with an 11th-hour deal Tuesday. Money aside, Fox had to acknowledge the court’s ruling that “certain claims about Dominion” that Fox perpetuated on-air were in fact false. The Neutral-to-Positive Winner: Dominion Voting SystemsFor more than two years, Dominion spent untold amounts of money building a defamation case against one of the most popular TV networks on the planet. Davida Brook, left, Justin Nelson, second from left, and Stephen Shackelford, attorneys for Dominion Voting Systems, exit the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington, Delaware, on Tuesday. But for a company that’s valued somewhere between $30 million and $80 million, it’s quite a deal.

☆ Dominion isn’t Rupert Murdoch’s costliest legal defeat. Not even close
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

But for now, the price tag attached to the Dominion case isn’t the worst Fox chairman Rupert Murdoch has had to stomach. A phone hacking scandal involving Murdoch’s tabloid newspaper empire in the United Kingdom has proven much more costly over the past decade or so. It looked at legal fees and damages, as well as expenses tied to the subsequent restructuring of Murdoch’s UK media empire. The last big Murdoch legal fightThe editor of Murdoch’s News of the World and a private investigator were convicted of conspiracy to hack the voicemails of British royals in 2007. Britain’s Prince Harry and actor Hugh Grant are among those who have filed legal challenges against The Sun tied to phone hacking.

Fox agreed to a $787.5 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems on Tuesday. But a senior media executive told Insider that insurance typically handles these types of payments. Fox Corp. had nearly $4.1 billion of cash on hand, according to comments made in February by company CEO Lachlan Murdoch. Fox Corp., which also owns assets such as the broadcast network and streamer Tubi, has a market capitalization of $17.61 billion as of Tuesday. In 2017, Fox also agreed to a $90 million "derivatives" settlement against company officers over sexual harassment issues at Fox News, according to Reuters.

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