Dominion Accuses Fox Of Deliberate Effort To Spread False Vote Rigging Claims; Attorneys Square Off In Next Phase Of Defamation Lawsuit

deadline.com:

Dominion Voting Systems and Fox attorneys squared off in the next chapter of the landmark defamation case on Tuesday, as each side is seeking a judge’s ruling that would deliver a victory and perhaps forestall a trial. “Fox essentially made Sidney Powell a household name,” said Rodney Smolla, a First Amendment expert and attorney for Dominion, referring to the attorney who was one of the chief purveyors of the false voting fraud rigging claims.

Smolla also said that Fox had a role in elevating two others making similar allegations, Rudy Giuliani and Mike Lindell. Dominion’s attorneys spent the morning trying to show how Fox bore responsibility for spreading false claims about the company, even as the network has argued that it was merely covering a newsworthy topic ultimately in the public interest: A president’s contention that the election was rigged.

Smolla said that there was a “deliberate decision for those responsible for the broadcasts to let the story be out there, to let loose the hoax, to release the Kraken.” The latter was a reference to one of Powell’s declarations at a now-infamous press conference with Giuliani.

He said that court precedent does not support Fox News’ argument that it is protected by the neutral report privilege. Another attorney, Justin Nelson, argued that there was ample evidence to show that Fox News executives and hosts knew what their guests were going to say, yet booked them anyway and did not fact check them.