That’s what CNN legal analyst Laura Coates told Erin Burnett Thursday night when she discussed Smartmatic’s $ 2.7 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News, three of the network’s hosts (Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo and Jeanine Pirro), Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell.
“When you make statements that are knowingly false and you make them maliciously, and you actually tarnish the reputation and have a financial consequence; that’s why you have defamation lawsuits in the first place,” Coates said, explaining the seriousness of the lawsuit.
Coates isn’t alone in believing that Smartmatic’s suit poses a real threat to Fox. University of Georgia Media Law Professor Jonathan Peters
posted on Twitter that “the law of defamation makes prevalence difficult when the plaintiff is a public figure and / or where the speech involves a matter of public interest. In various ways, they will be key issues in litigation.” But Peters added that he believed the “smart money” belonged to Smartmatic.
This appeared to be the general consensus among legal experts who commented on the case on Thursday. Although Fox described the lawsuit as “without merit,” Powell called it a “political maneuver” and Giuliani said he hoped to find out, most legal experts believed he had some bite. “This lawsuit is a legitimate threat, a real threat,” CNN legal analyst Ellie Honig said. “There are real teeth in that.” And Roy Gutterman, who heads Syracuse University’s Tully Center for Free Speech, echoed WaPo: “This complaint sets out a compelling narrative in its 270 more pages. It will certainly be interesting to see how the defendants frame it. their answers “.
This is not an annoying dress
Brian Stelter writes: “Defamation lawsuits against media organizations are usually on a slippery slope. Journalists have good reason to worry about such cases. And lawsuit harassment against newsrooms is a real problem. But I think it is safe to say that Smartmatic’s action against Fox is not an annoying suit, and has little to do with the news.It will be difficult for Fox to wrap his hosts with a press freedom flag.This case is about animators who fueled the lies in a desperate bid to keep Trump in power. “
“Misinformation has a free reign right now”
When I spoke with Smartmatic’s lawyer, Erik Connolly, who is known for his “pink drool”, about the case, I insisted on whether he was concerned that his trial could set a precedent that could ultimately harm press freedoms. . His response was that the lawsuit would be really beneficial to legitimate news organizations. “I think that’s the kind of case that needs to be filed right now to try to get away from misinformation,” Connolly told me. “Misinformation is free right now. This kind of case can be a shot through the bow that the courts can deliver that says, ‘Let’s get back to reality.’ Let’s go back to the presentation of facts “.
A world of people who “tell direct lies”
Stelter writes, “I was struck by something that Roberta Kaplan, a lawyer representing the author, Jean Jean Carroll, told the NYT. Carroll is suing Trump for defamation. Kaplan” stated that the profusion of circumstances of defamation associated with the previous president was remarkable. “as there is a perception that these cases are difficult to win.” What has changed, “Kaplan said,” and why today we see so many more cases of defamation than never, is it because, frankly, we live in a world where people with legitimacy and authority don’t seem to feel any commitment to just telling direct lies. ”That’s why, in part, other legal experts say Smartmatic has a strong argument : Lies are explicit and easily discredited, which is why it may not be so difficult to prove that Fox and his hosts knew, or should have known, that they were telling lies – which is the “real malice” rule they have to meet public figures in cases of defamation … “
Lies have consequences
It is crucial to point out the consequences that the series of conspiracy theories pushed against Smartmatic have had for the company. In its lawsuit, Smartmatic detailed some of the ramifications: a wave of threats against its employees, a “meteoric rise” in cyberattacks, and hundreds of millions of dollars in projected revenue losses. CEO and founder Antonio Mugica told me that “there was no other remedy” that the company had to file the lawsuit. “The disinformation campaign that was launched against us is destructive. For us, this is existential and we need to take action.”
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