The members of the “Flat Earth Society” support the thesis that the earth is flat and photos from space are only fakes. The organization, founded in 1956, has Facebook on Facebook around 220,000 followers. The forerunner of the Flat Earth Society, the Universal Zetetic Society, published a magazine called Earth Not a Globe. If it were true that the media should not spread false information, the magazine should have been banned.
But it wasn’t. Because the thesis that the earth is flat does not harm anyone. This is different when it comes to companies and products.
In 2017, the American TV broadcaster ABC News paid almost $180 million in damages to a meat producer that it had falsely said its products were harmful to health. That was a record sum in such a procedure.
However, it is small compared to the amount that the TV broadcaster Fox News now has to transfer to the voting machine manufacturer “Dominion Voting Systems”. It is worth 787.5 million dollars to the riot conservative media company that its internal communication channels, its agreements, intrigues and strategies are not publicly negotiated for weeks.
Literally at the last minute before the start of a trial that had already drawn the nation’s eyes, plaintiffs and defendants reached a settlement Tuesday.
Key issues of freedom of the press and freedom of expression
That settles one of two defamation lawsuits filed against Fox News. They had been filed by two manufacturers of voting machines. “Smartmatic” wants $2.7 billion in damages from media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s group, “Dominion Voting Systems” estimated the losses from damage to business at originally $1.6 billion.
The amount of compensation that has now been agreed amounts to around half of that. Twelve jurors should have decided on guilt or innocence and key issues of freedom of the press and freedom of expression.
Both companies accuse Fox News of spreading claims that they rigged the 2020 presidential election to prevent Donald Trump from being re-elected. The ex-president is still spreading the lie about the “stolen election” to this day. Most Republicans share this view.
The broadcaster Fox News, which has almost always unreservedly supported Trump, invokes freedom of the press and the First Amendment, which guarantees comprehensive freedom of expression.
The fact that Dominion had presented extensive material in the past few weeks is likely to be a burden for the broadcaster – and probably a decisive factor in its willingness to pay $787.5 million. This strengthened the suspicion that editors, moderators and Murdoch would have known that the allegations of manipulation were false.
It was about audience numbers and profits. After all, the competition never sleeps. The material is documented by communication processes and affidavits.
What can be disseminated? The media report on what is happening and what is meant. That’s how it should be. This alone does not mean that they align themselves with the opinions that they propagate. In a talk show, for example, climate and corona deniers are allowed to have their say, and Vladimir Putin and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have already been interviewed on German television. However, it can be expected that critical questions will be asked, lies and false information will be exposed.
Comprehensive protection against defamation lawsuits
Had Fox spread the lies about a rigged election against their better judgment and out of pure malice? The plaintiffs would have had to prove this beyond a doubt, which according to knowledgeable observers would have been difficult though. Because the legal hurdles for such proof are high. Since a Supreme Court ruling in 1964, American media have enjoyed extensive protection from libel suits.
Fox News was primarily concerned with avoiding further embarrassment and exposure about its internal practices. Among other things, it came to light that the worst liars about the “stolen election” – Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani and his colleague Sidney Powell – were repeatedly interviewed out of sheer greed for quotas.
Tucker Carlson, the most radical of the Fox moderators, wrote to a colleague about Trump, whom he always praised on camera: “I hate him passionately.” This condensed the image of a hypocritical and unscrupulous media apparatus that cares about nothing else as profits and odds goes.
Of course, the drama is not quite over. In the comparison with “Dominion” Fox News had to admit to having broadcast certain lies about the election result. That admission could be used by the lawyers for Smartmatic, the other voting machine maker suing for defamation damages.
Some of Fox News’ misconduct was uncovered by Dominion, Smartmatic said shortly after the settlement became known. You will discover the rest yourself. That sounds like a threat and a promise at the same time.
