In new filings as part of Dominion Voting Systems’ $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox and its networks, Fox Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch said some anchors of the company’s TV networks endorsed false fraud claims in the months following the 2020 election. Murdoch added that he doubted the claims being aired on Fox News and Fox Business Network.
Murdoch also acknowledged that Fox’s TV hosts endorsed the false election fraud claims. During Murdoch’s deposition, when asked if he was “now aware that Fox endorsed at times this false notion of a stolen election,” Murdoch responded, “Not Fox, no. Not Fox. But maybe Lou Dobbs, maybe Maria [Bartiromo] as commentators … Some of our commentators were endorsing it. They endorsed.”
Dominion sued Fox, Fox News and Fox Business, arguing the networks and its on-air personalities made false claims that its voting machines rigged the results of the 2020 election. Fox News has consistently denied that it knowingly made false claims about the election, and has said “the core of this case remains about freedom of the press and freedom of speech.” Fox said in earlier court documents that the past year of discovery has shown the company played “no role in the creation and publication of the challenged statements — all of which aired on either Fox Business Network or Fox News Channel.”
The lawsuit is being closely monitored by First Amendment watchdogs and experts. A status conference in the case is slated for next week, with the trial scheduled to begin mid-April.
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