Fox News sets up with Dominion for $ 787 million, avoiding the defamation trial during its elections in 2020
Wilmington, Delaware
Cnn
–
Tuesday, Fox News concluded a last second settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, because the case ran to opening declarations, paying more than $ 787 million to end a two -year -old colossal legal battle that has publicly destroyed the credibility of the right network.
Fox News’ $ 787.5 million regulations with Dominion Voting Systems is the largest defamation regulations known in the history of the United States involving a media company.
The agreement was announced a few hours after the jury was sworn in to the Superior Court of Delaware. Rumors of colony swirl in the courthouse when, after a lunch break, the procedure ended spectacular for almost three hours without explanation, while the parties apparently hammered an agreement.
“The parties have resolved their business,” said judge Eric Davis, before rejecting the jury of 12 members, of attributing them to the parties to reach a regulation, praising lawyers on both sides, and in the process of browsing the so-called media “trial of the century” before he could begin.
The revolutionary regulations “represent justification and responsibility,” said Dominion Justin Nelson’s lawyer. “For our democracy to continue for an additional 250 years, and, we hope, much longer, we must share a commitment to the facts … Today represents an approval that sounds for truth and for democracy.”
The right network said in a statement that it “recognized[s] The decisions of the Court deeming certain affirmations on Dominion are false, “refer to the recent Davis decision that 20 Fox News of the end of 2020 contained manifestly false affirmations that Dominion has rigged the presidential election. But Fox will not have to admit to the air that he propagated on Dominion, a representative of Dominion told CNN.
Payment of $ 787.5 million is about half of the $ 1.6 billion that Dominion initially sought, although almost 10 times the company’s assessment compared to 2018, and approximately eight times its annual income in 2021, according to judicial files.
The last minute agreement means that the closely watched file is completed and will not proceed to the trial. By settling down with Dominion, influential Fox News executives and eminent air personalities will be spared from testifying to their electoral coverage in 2020, which was filled with lies on electoral fraud.
The list of witnesses included the president of Fox Corporation, Rupert Murdoch, his son CEO Lachlan Murdoch, and the guests of Top Fox like Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson. The overwhelming emails, the SMS and the testimonies of deposit made public during the case revealed that these figures, and many others in Fox, declared in private in 2020 that complaints against Dominion were Asinines. But the lies were still widespread in the air.
Rupert Murdoch thought that the electoral denial was “really crazy”, even if Fox personalities had stuck these same claims to millions of viewers. Carlson said that he “passionately” hates Donald Trump, the presidency of which was a “disaster”. The hosts, the producers, the verifiers of facts and the senior executives declared in private in the affirmations in difficulty of a stolen election was “Kooky”, “dangerously reckless” and “crazy blower”.
These revelations have generated months of major titles for Fox, because the case has evolved towards the trial. By settling now, Fox has deprived Dominion a chance to expose his dishonesty more with a trial of several weeks.
“These regulations reflect Fox’s continuous commitment to the highest journalistic standards,” Fox said in a statement on Tuesday. “We hope that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a division trial, allows the country to progress from these questions.”
Fox News and Fox Corporation – His parent company, who was also a defendant – maintains that they never defamed Dominion, and say that the case was an assault without foundation against press freedoms of the first amendment.
Speculation of a regulation has reached a fever land in recent days, especially after the court announced on Sunday a day at the start of the trial, which was initially starting on Monday.
The jury selection process ended as scheduled Tuesday morning, and the two parties prepared for opening declarations. They even briefly contacted objections to specific slides in their presentations. But when the procedure did not resume quickly after lunch, the chances of an agreement seemed to increase by the minute, even if the best lawyers on both sides were seated in the courtroom, looking at their phones and waiting.
The racially diversified jury of six men and six women was brought back to the court, ready for their headquarters to the first row line at a historic trial. But Davis, the judge, rather told the panel that they helped to stimulate a regulation.
“Your presence here, short in relation to what you thought, and without incident in a certain sense, was extremely important,” said Davis. “Without you, the parties could not have resolved their situation.”
Many of the Dominion side have thrown the colony as a victory for democracy and for the truth itself.
“Fox admitted to having said to Dominion who caused enormous damage to my company, to our employees and to the customers we serve,” said Dominion CEO John Poulos, Tuesday outside the court.
Although the case of Dominion is now finished, Fox News is still faced with a second major defamation trial in SmartMatic, another voting technology company which was also rooted in Fox News emissions after the 2020 elections. This case is still in the discovery process, and a trial is not expected to be expected soon.
For his part, Dominion still has prosecution against right -wing television networks Newsmax and Oan, as well as against the allies of Trump Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell and Mike Lindell. They deny all the reprehensible acts.
Liam Reilly and Danny Freeman from CNN contributed to this story.
