Court is back in session after a lunch break and opening statements are expected to begin soon in the landmark defamation lawsuit brought by election technology company Dominion Voting Systems against Fox News.
Here’s what you need to know about the high-stakes case:
Why is Dominion suing Fox News? Dominion sued Fox News in 2021 over the right-wing network’s repeated promotion of false claims about the company, including that its voting machines rigged the 2020 election, shifting millions of votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden. Most of the 20 allegedly defamatory broadcasts cited in the lawsuit occurred in November and December 2020.
The company claims that people at Fox News acted with actual malice and “recklessly ignored the truth” when they spread this misinformation about Dominion. To prove “actual malice,” Dominion must convince a jury that the people at Fox News who were responsible for these 20 broadcasts knew that Dominion’s claims were false or recklessly overlooked evidence of falsity — but aired them anyway .
According to Dominion’s theory of the case, Fox promoted these election conspiracy theories because “the lies were good for Fox’s business.” Dominion’s clothing specifically featured on shows hosted by Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity and Jeanine Pirro. Dominion said that as a result of Fox’s “orchestrated smear campaign” it suffered “enormous and irreparable economic harm” and that its employees were subjected to death threats and harassment.
What is Fox’s defense? Fox said it has not defamed anyone and that the case is an unmerited assault on press freedom.
A Fox spokesperson said the network “is proud of our 2020 election coverage” and that its coverage “stands in the highest tradition of American journalism.” The company said: “Dominion’s lawsuit is a political crusade in search of financial gain, but the real cost would be cherished First Amendment rights.”
Fox also accused Dominion of creating “noise and confusion” around the case, saying that “the heart of this case rests on freedom of the press and freedom of speech, which are fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution,” specifically the First Amendment.
Fox tried to nail down the cause. But in a major blow to the right-wing network last month, the judge hearing the case allowed it to go to trial. It also barred Fox from invoking some key First Amendment defenses, finding them to be without merit.
What is Dominion asking for? Dominion is seeking $1.6 billion in damages. They say Fox’s on-air lies destroyed their reputation and induced election officials to cancel their Dominion contracts. CNN recently reported on the growing distrust of voting machines in heavily Republican counties.
What are test logistics? The trial is expected to last five to six weeks and will be overseen by Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric M. Davis, who was appointed to the state bench in 2012 by a Democratic governor. A panel of 12 jurors and 12 alternates is in place.
Cameras are not allowed in the courtroom and there will be no video of the proceedings. There will also be no still photography in the courtroom.
Who is expected to testify? Expected witnesses include Fox Corporation executives Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan Murdoch; Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott and Chairman Jay Wallace; leading television hosts Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs, Jeanine Pirro and Bret Baier, among others.
Dominion said it may also call Viet Dinh, Fox’s legal chief, and former House Speaker Paul Ryan, a Fox board member, to the witness stand.
Both sides also hope to get testimony from their selected experts who specialize in election statistics, voting machine security, journalism ethics, the impact of disinformation on public discourse, and more.
Read more about the case here.