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Why Trump chose CNN for his Town Hall
Does former president Donald Trump’s CNN Town Hall have anything to do with Fox News? Rumored 2024 GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie thinks the answer is a resounding yes.
On GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, the former governor of New Jersey theorized that Trump is holding his first televised discussion with 2024 voters on CNN to give a ratings boost to Fox’s principal competitor and punish the network for settling the recent lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems.
In settling the lawsuit, Fox News recognized that “certain claims” about Dominion’s voting machines that it repeated during news broadcasts weren’t true, contradicting the lies Trump has been repeating about the 2020 election being rigged.
The town hall will also be a test for moderator Kaitlan Collins, who covered the Trump White House as CNN’s chief White House correspondent in 2021. Democrats worry about Trump repeating misinformation on air, Republicans wonder if it’s even possible he’ll be given a fair shake on CNN.
“There's no question that this is Donald Trump's response to Fox having settled the Dominion Voting Systems case,” Chris Christie tells Ian Bremmer, “In the end I hope that what Fox has learned from this is that authenticity matters and that people should be on the air saying what they really believe.”
Watch the full interview on the upcoming episode of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer, airing on US public television nationwide. Check local listings.
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- Dominion Voting v. Fox News: The stakes are higher than you think ›
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Abandoned footwear and other belongings lie on the ground after a stampede in Sanaa, Yemen.
Hard Numbers: Stampede in Yemen, Dominion’s incredible windfall, China’s nuclear ambitions, Russian influence ring busted in Florida, Japanese dream homes
78: At least 78 people were killed Thursday in a stampede at a school in Sana'a, Yemen's capital. Hundreds were reportedly crushed after Houthi rebels shot into the air in an attempt at crowd control, striking an electrical wire and causing mass panic. As the end of Ramadan nears, scores of people were gathering at the school to receive donations of about $9 each.
1,500: No matter what you think about the precedent set by Dominion’s $787.5 million settlement with Fox News, one thing’s for sure: Somebody got very rich here. And that somebody is Staple Street, a little-known private equity firm that paid a mere $38.3 million for a controlling stake in Dominion five years ago and just got blessed with a 1,500% return on their investment.
25: Russia recently sent Beijing 25 tons of highly enriched uranium to start up a special new Chinese reactor that will help Xi Jinping rapidly expand his nuclear arsenal. Experts say China’s nukes will soon be on par with those of Russia and the US, meaning that Beijing should be party to any new arms control treaties that replace the (currently defunct) US-Russia ones.
4: The US government has charged four members of a Black nationalist group in Florida with belonging to a Kremlin-run conspiracy to “sow discord” and “corrupt US elections.” The members of the African People’s Socialist Party allegedly failed to disclose payments from Russia for their work spreading pro-Kremlin messages.
11 million: If you want to buy a beautiful old house in Japan, you’re in luck. There are currently as many as 11 million empty homes scattered across the country, a result of Japan’s shrinking and aging population. Experts say the numbers of these so-called “akiya” homes will only rise in the coming years, so if you’re interested, grab yourself a copy of In Praise of Shadows, hop a flight to Tokyo, and seek out your dream home.Members of the activist groups Truth Tuesdays and Rise and Resist gathered at a weekly FOX LIES DEMOCRACY DIES event outside the NewsCorp Building in Manhattan.
Dominion Voting v. Fox News: The stakes are higher than you think
Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems, following a one-day delay, are set to square off in court on Tuesday. Dominion is suing for defamation, claiming that Fox’s hosts and guests knowingly spread a false narrative that the company’s voting systems flipped votes against former President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.
What’s at stake?$1.6 billion, the future of the media industry, and the Super Bowl of libel law decisions.
The outcome will have implications for both the media and the First Amendment. SinceNew York Times v. Sullivan gave broad protection to the American press in 1964, there have been almost impossibly high standards for suing a media organization for defamation. Prosecutors need to prove “actual malice” or that the outlet knowingly, or with reckless disregard for the truth, published a falsehood.
Dominion says Fox pushed lies about it algorithmically transferring votes to Biden. These lies, Dominion claims, cost it $1.6 billion in reputational damages. Armed with emails and texts, Dominion’s legal team reportedly aims to reveal that Fox News execs and hosts did not believe Trump’s election fraud claims.
Fox News, meanwhile, is expected to argue that it is protected by the First Amendment and that it was merely covering Trump’s narrative about the results. Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and founder Rupert Murdoch are expected to testify.
Why haven’t they settled? Slated to begin on Monday, the trail was delayed late Sunday for last-minute settlement discussions. Negotiations are not expected to succeed, as Dominion is fighting to recoup its reputation more than financial losses.
Fox News may be more amenable to settling after being reprimanded for potentially withholding evidence. But any settlement would also include an apology under terms set by Dominion, which would come at a reputational loss for the right-wing media giant.
Dominion’s lawyers, who filed requests with the court on Monday that indicate they are ready to proceed, believe they have enough evidence to meet the defamation threshold.
If the jury sides with Dominion, the ruling will upend decades of defamation precedent protecting the media. If Fox prevails, it will send the message that the First Amendment protects outlets even when they spread disinformation. Whatever the decision, the implications of this trial extend far beyond the courtroom.