Truth fights back

By Artchil B. Fernandez

Lying does not pay. There is a huge consequence in lying. The punishment for lying is US$787.5 million. This Fox News belatedly found out.

Fox News, one of the biggest cable news networks in the United States (US) faced a defamation lawsuit from Dominion Voting Systems. The case is an offshoot of the 2020 US presidential election and the “great, big lie” of the election loser.

In 2020 US presidential election, then President Donald Trump lost to current President Joe Biden both in the popular (81.2 million – 74.2 million) and electoral (306-232) votes. Instead of accepting the result gracefully as his predecessors had done, Trump refused to acknowledge his defeat. He went on to claim that the election was stolen, that it was rigged.

Trump filed 62 lawsuits to overturn the election result and 61 of them failed. The lone case where the judge sided with Trump was not even about election result but on whether voters could not go back and “cure” their ballots if they failed to provide proper identification three days after the election in Pennsylvania.

There is no evidence that the 2020 US presidential election was rigged, no evidence of massive voter fraud, no evidence of large-scale cheating. Yet Trump insisted on this lie until now.

One of the biggest supporters of Trump is Fox News. Despite absence of evidence, Fox News amplified Trump’s “big lie” about the 2020 election. The network kept on repeating the “election lie” and became its largest promoter.

Dominion Voting Systems, one of the companies who managed the 2020 election filed a lawsuit against Fox News in 2021. The voting company was falsely accused by the network of manipulating election results in favor of Biden. To clear its name, assert the truth and hold Fox News accountable for its action, Dominion sued the network. Dominion claimed the lies aired by Fox News caused the company “enormous and irreparable economic harm” and sought US$1.6 billion in damages.

In the pre-trial stage, Fox News tried to have the case dismissed by arguing that its lie-laced broadcasts were protected by the First Amendment and the allegations were “newsworthy.”  The court however disagreed and ordered the case to go on trial.

Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis found Fox News liable. “The evidence does not support that (Fox News) conducted good-faith, disinterested reporting,” Davis wrote. “(Fox News’) failure to reveal extensive contradicting evidence from the public sphere and Dominion itself indicates that its reporting was not disinterested.”

A jury was selected in April 13 and the trial was about to begin last April 19. The case is not only sensational but is expected to be an international blockbuster. At the heart of the case is the fight between “fake news” and “real news,” fact versus fiction, truth against lies.

In the eleventh hour, as the trial was about to start, Fox News settled the defamation lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million. The showdown was averted and the world was denied of the spectacle where top management and news anchors of the network will testify and subjected to grueling grilling and questioning.

The settlement is an admission of Fox News that it peddled lies and falsehoods.

“We acknowledge the court’s rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false. This settlement reflects Fox’s continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards. We are hopeful that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a divisive trial, allows the country to move forward from these issues,” Fox News said on the settlement of the case.

“Fox has admitted to telling lies about Dominion that caused enormous damage to my company, our employees and our customers,” Dominion CEO John Poulos said in a statement. “Nothing can ever make up for that. Throughout this process, we have sought accountability and believe the evidence brought to light through this case underscores the consequences of spreading and endorsing lies.”

A similar case was filed by another voting company Smartmatic against Fox News.  Smartmatic lawsuit is seeking $2.7 billion in damages in a New York state court. The Dominion settlement will have a bearing on the case.

This week, top Fox News anchor and chief peddler of conspiracy theories, lies and falsehoods, Tucker Carlson was unceremoniously and suddenly fired by the network. The sacking of Carlson is the fallout of Dominion defamation case. Lying does not pay.

Truth fights back and liars are held accountable and punished. Despite knowing that Trump’s “stolen election” claim is a lie, Fox News amplified and promoted it to please its right-wing audience and salve their cognitive dissonance. Truth in the end triumphed over lies, fact won over fiction and “fake news” is slain.

What happened to Fox News is a lesson and a warning to spreaders of “fake news,” lies, and falsehoods. Messing with the truth is messy and truth in the long run wins. More than money, Fox News lost credibility – the most precious asset of a news organization. Who would cite and refer to Fox News henceforth? It peddles lies, spread misinformation as well as disinformation and it is no longer trustworthy as source of news and information.

Spreading fake news does not pay. What happened to “fake news” queen Mocha Uson?  Current merchant of lies like Daryl Yap and his patroness Imee Marcos must take heed from what happened to Fox News and other traders of lies and falsehoods. Truth will get you and will make you pay. Lies never win and liars will get their just desert.