Judge Dismisses Defamation Suit Against Fox News by Former Head of Disinformation Board

[Social Media]

 

A federal judge has dismissed a defamation lawsuit brought against Fox News by Nina Jankowicz, a government official who served on the briefly operational U.S. government Disinformation Governance Board. Jankowicz's lawsuit alleged that Fox News had defamed her multiple times, inciting waves of online attacks and threats following the creation of the board. The Disinformation Governance Board, launched by the Department of Homeland Security, was intended to counter disinformation from foreign sources and misleading information aimed at migrants. However, the board's work was paused in May 2022, just weeks after its inception, and Jankowicz resigned.

 

The board was officially dissolved and its charter rescinded in August 2022. In dismissing Jankowicz's claims, the judge noted that 36 of the 37 statements made on Fox News programs were about the disinformation board itself and not directly about Jankowicz. The judge ruled that the one remaining statement, which showed an image of Jankowicz while discussing the board, was not disinformation. The judge determined that it was a factual statement that accurately reflected the board’s charter and its stated purpose.

 

 

Fox News responded to the dismissal by stating, "This was a politically motivated lawsuit aimed at silencing free speech and we are pleased with the court’s decision to protect the First Amendment." Jankowicz had alleged that Fox News falsely claimed she intended to censor Americans' speech and wanted to give verified Twitter users, including herself, the power to edit others' tweets. These claims were among those Jankowicz cited as defamatory.

 

The Disinformation Governance Board was initiated by the Department of Homeland Security to address disinformation threats, particularly from Russia, and to combat misleading information circulated by human smugglers targeting migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. However, the board faced immediate backlash from Republican lawmakers and conservative commentators, who took to social media to demand its disbandment. They labeled the board as an Orwellian entity potentially capable of suppressing free speech.

 

This legal battle occurs in the context of other high-profile defamation cases involving Fox News. In April 2023, Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems nearly $800 million to avoid a trial in a lawsuit that would have revealed how the network promoted false claims about the 2020 presidential election.

 

Credit: US News 2024-07-24

 

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[Tug]

To bad faux fake news is a very large part of the problems we are facing today .we need a mechanism to deal with so called news organizations that deliberately spread lies and disinformation under the umbrella of free speech.

[impulse]

45 minutes ago, Tug said:

To bad faux fake news is a very large part of the problems we are facing today .we need a mechanism to deal with so called news organizations that deliberately spread lies and disinformation under the umbrella of free speech.

 

Here's a quiz...  Name the single US MSM outlet that has been honest to the American people about Biden's condition, all along.

 

[rice555]

9 hours ago, impulse said:

 

Here's a quiz...  Name the single US MSM outlet that has been honest to the American people about Biden's condition, all along.

 

or the VP! Or cabinet clowns?

[Chomper Higgot]

9 hours ago, impulse said:

 

Here's a quiz...  Name the single US MSM outlet that has been honest to the American people about Biden's condition, all along.

 

Produce a diagnosis of the alleged condition and I’ll get back to you. 

[jchfriis]

16 hours ago, impulse said:

 

Here's a quiz...  Name the single US MSM outlet that has been honest to the American people about Biden's condition, all along.

 

.....  Or that of Donald Trump

[EVENKEEL]

9 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Produce a diagnosis of the alleged condition and I’ll get back to you. 

Biden is sharp as a tack.