Donald Trump reportedly called in to the Fox Business Network following the violence by his supporters at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. But executives wouldn’t allow the then-president on the air, deciding it would be “irresponsible” to provide him with a platform, a court filing has revealed.
Trump dialed in to “Lou Dobbs Tonight,” attempting to get on the program, according to the bombshell brief filed Thursday by attorneys for Dominion Voting Systems. The company is suing Fox News and its parent, the Fox Corporation, for $1.6 billion over alleged defamation.
But Fox Business Network President Lauren Petterson said the network believed “it would be irresponsible to put him on air” and that Trump’s words “could impact a lot of people in a negative way,” according to testimony quoted in the brief.
The host of the program, Lou Dobbs, was a staunch supporter of Trump and his baseless claims that he lost the 2020 presidential vote due to a rigged election. Dobbs regularly interviewed Trump and his allies on the air during his presidency.
Fox canceled Dobbs’ show just weeks after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
The House select committee that investigated the riot was unaware during its probe that Trump had reached out to Fox that day, a source told CNN.
Fox is defending itself in Dominion’s defamation case by arguing that freedom of the press and freedom of speech are protected by the Constitution. But courts in the past have ruled that deliberate lying is not always protected.
Dominion argued in the brief that Fox News hosts and executives did not believe Trump’s rigged election lie yet deliberately continued to peddle the story on the network.
dogsent on February 18th, 2023 at 15:13 UTC »
Dominion seems to have a very strong case. The fact that they decided not to put Trump on air during the January 6th attack on the Capitol clearly shows that Fox/Murdock wasn't just covering the news.
I hope Dominion is awarded the full $1.6 billion in damages.
Journalism has been replaced by influencers. People like Alex Jones make outrageous false statements to a very large audience that apparently believes whatever lies they are told. This is incredibly dangerous. Individuals and companies need to be held accountable for the consequences.
The Society of Professional Journalists has a code of ethics that members are expected to follow.
Preamble
https://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp
This is the difference between journalism and influencers.
CliveWashington1 on February 18th, 2023 at 14:56 UTC »
Fox probably thought it was irresponsible to let Trump incriminate himself live on air
TintedApostle on February 18th, 2023 at 14:19 UTC »
They told Trump where to buy the gasoline. They hid Trump buying the gasoline. The hid handing him the matches. Finally they hid Trump pouring the gasoline on the Capital.
Refusing to help Trump pour more gas on the fire after it was lit because that would be "irresponsible" is a freaking joke. These people should be arrested.