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Report: Trump Threatens to Sue Media Outlets Over 'False Statements'
Above: US Pres.-elect Donald Trump attends the America First Policy Institute Gala held at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla. on Nov. 14, 2024. Image copyright: Saul Martinez/The Washington Post via Getty Images
The Facts
An attorney for US Pres.-elect Donald Trump reportedly sent a legal letter to the New York Times (and Penguin Random House) just days before the election, requesting $10B in damages over "false and defamatory statements" in multiple articles.
According to the Columbia Journalism Review, the letter described the Times as "a full-throated mouthpiece of the Democratic Party" and accused four journalists — Peter Baker, Michael S. Schmidt, Susanne Craig and Russ Buettner — of spreading lies about Trump.
The Spin
Democratic narrative
Trump previously said he would be a dictator from day one in office, and this legal warfare against news outlets and reporters reveals that he really wants to make good on that campaign threat. These lawsuits aren't about winning billions of dollars in damages, but about burdening journalists and their employees to undermine press freedom.
Republican narrative
Legacy media spent years attacking the former president and now president-elect with false and defamatory statements, so it's only natural that Trump and his camp have decided to file lawsuits against news outlets and reporters. This isn't an attack on press freedom, but rather a pursuit of media accountability.