Topline
Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott blasted the network’s truth-checking of then-President Donald Trump’s false election fraud claims as “bad for business” in an e-mail shortly immediately after the 2020 presidential election, according to numerous reports, citing a court presentation from Dominion Voting Systems, which has portrayed Fox News as a network in turmoil immediately after the election as it moves forward with its $1.six billion defamation lawsuit.
featuring Fox News personalities, like Bret Baier, Martha MacCallum, Tucker Carlson, Laura Ingraham and Sean Hannity, in the front of the News Corporation creating on March 13, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Photos)Getty Photos
Important Information
Scott reportedly told prime time programming executive Meade Cooper in an e-mail dated December two, 2020 that the truth-checking “has to cease now,” arguing the reporting showed “a lack of understanding” about what Fox News’ audience wanted.
The message came weeks immediately after Scott privately said, “I can not maintain defending these reporters who do not fully grasp our viewers and how to manage stories”—blaming them for a loss of 25,000 Fox Nation streaming service subscribers.
Dominion Voting Systems reportedly showed the messages in a slideshow in court final week as an April 17 trial begin date looms in its defamation case against Fox News—though each sides have pushed for resolving the lawsuit by way of a pretrial summary judgment.
A Fox News spokesperson admonished Dominion in a statement for a “continued reliance on cherry-picked quotes without having context to create headlines in order to distract from the information of this case,” calling the lawsuit an attack on the absolutely free press.
Vital Quote
“We can nonetheless repair this but we can not smirk at our viewers any longer,” Scott reportedly wrote on November 19, 2020.
Surprising Truth
Dominion’s slideshow reportedly showed Tucker Carlson’s employees privately calling MyPillow founder and frequent guest Mike Lindell “crazy,” saying he had “gone off the deep end” by advertising unfounded conspiracy theories about election fraud. A message then defended Lindell appearing on the show given that he was its “biggest advertiser.”
Important Background
Dominion, which operated voting machines in dozens of states in the 2020 election, filed the higher-profile lawsuit in 2021, accusing Fox News of substantial harm to its brand by way of airing unfounded conspiracy theories suggesting the company’s voting machines had been somehow rigged against Trump. Dominion has claimed common prime time shows hosted by Tucker Carlson, Laura Ingraham and Sean Hannity had been important to advertising conspiracy theories, even even though the hosts had been privately skeptical of Trump’s fraud claims. Fox Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch mentioned in a January deposition he believed Fox News need to have pushed back against the fraud claims additional, saying, “I would have liked us to be stronger in denouncing it in hindsight.” He also recommended letting Lindell run advertisements on the network was a monetary move, rather than political, agreeing with the statement: “It is not red or blue—it is green.”
Tangent
Dominion released several text messages final month displaying Fox News hosts mocking guests who pushed conspiracy theories, specially former Trump lawyer Sidney Powell. Carlson mentioned she was “insane” and “shockingly reckless” to market Dominion fraud claims, although Ingraham labeled her a “complete nut.”
Additional Reading
Fox News Sued By Dominion Voting For Defamation More than Election Conspiracy (Forbes)
Murdoch Admits Fox News Hosts Pushed False Election Fraud Claims (Forbes)
‘Mind Blowingly Nuts’: Fox News Hosts And Execs Repeatedly Denounced 2020 Election Fraud Off-Air—Here Are Their Most Scathing Comments (Forbes)
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I am a news reporter for Forbes focused on national politics and other news of the day, such as social media trends, business enterprise and the war in Ukraine.
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