Pro-Trump media outlet, Newsmax, ordered to compensate a significant sum to voting machine company following legal dispute - Newsmax channel, a pro-Trump outlet, agrees to pay substantial sums in settlement to voting equipment company
In a recent development, conservative news outlet Newsmax has reached a settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, a leading provider of election technology, over defamation claims related to false election fraud allegations in the 2020 U.S. Presidential election.
The settlement, which was reached out of court, does not resolve any claims related to the election itself or allegations of election fraud. However, it does bring an end to a contentious legal battle that saw Newsmax accused of spreading false claims about Dominion's voting machines.
Newsmax was sued by Dominion for approximately $1.6 billion (€1.37 billion) in damages, with the lawsuit alleging that Newsmax promoted a narrative where up was down, pigs had wings, and Dominion perpetrated a massive fraud to rig the election in favor of Donald Trump.
The false claims, which were fueled by Trump's refusal to accept his defeat against Joe Biden, were widely circulated by Newsmax and other media outlets. As a result, Dominion accused Newsmax of flooding its audience with lies and creating a false narrative.
Newsmax, however, denies the defamation allegations and stands by its reporting. The settlement amounts do not include any punitive damages or attorney's fees. As part of the settlement, Newsmax paid Dominion $27 million as an initial settlement for defamation claims. The settlement also includes two more payments over the next two years.
This is not the first time Newsmax has been involved in a legal dispute over defamation claims related to the 2020 election. In a previous case, Newsmax reached a similar settlement with Smartmatic, another voting machine company. Smartmatic is also involved in a legal dispute with Fox News, as well as in a previous case with Newsmax.
Dominion reached a settlement with Fox News in December 2023, agreeing to pay Dominion $787.5 million (approximately €675 million). The settlement came after Dominion accused Fox News of spreading false election fraud conspiracy theories involving its machines.
The Trump administration's campaign to challenge the 2020 election results included spreading false claims about voting companies, leading to high-profile lawsuits and substantial settlements primarily related to defamation. The false claims were widely promoted by Trump surrogates and allies, including Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell, as well as certain media outlets like Fox News and Newsmax.
[1] Smartmatic files $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News, Giuliani, Powell, and others
[2] Trump Administration Pressured Federal Agencies to Seize Voting Machines
[3] Dominion Voting Systems Settles with Fox News for $787.5 Million Over 2020 Election Lies
- The ongoing legal frenzy, instigated by the 2020 U.S. Presidential election, has now led to Newsmax paying $27 million in an initial settlement to Dominion Voting Systems for defamation claims, further adding to the over $1 billion (€865 million) in combined settlements between voting machine companies and media outlets like Fox News and Newsmax.
- Taking a step back from the war-and-conflicts and crime-and-justice updates, the political arena in the US has been embroiled in a series of legal disputes related to false election fraud allegations, with policy-and-legislation and general-news taking a backseat in coverage as pro-Trump news channels like Newsmax and Fox News face defamation suits from voting machine companies like Dominion and Smartmatic.
- The recent settlement between Newsmax and Dominion Voting Systems, a case stemming from the 2020 election and its aftermath, could pave the way for further legal actions against media outlets and individuals who originally promoted false testimony regarding election fraud, such as Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani, in attempts to overturn the election results that saw Joe Biden elected as the US President.
