The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the views of Edmond Public Schools.
On Friday, Sept. 19, United States District Judge Steven Merryday tossed out a $15 billion defamation lawsuit filed in a Florida district court by President Donald Trump against the New York Times, Penguin Random House and several New York Times reporters. Judge Merryday described the 85-page lawsuit as “tedious and burdensome.” The lawsuit violated Rule 8 of civil procedure, which requires a claim to be “short and plain.” Although the lawsuit has been struck down for the time being, this action poses a direct threat to the free press.
Though the content the New York Times reported on could be damaging to the president’s reputation, it is not, by definition, defamatory. Under Florida law, defamation is a false statement knowingly presented as a fact to harm a person’s reputation. Additionally, public figures face a higher burden of proof when suing for defamation, as they must prove that the defendant knew what they published was false. None of the content in question meets these criteria, and by targeting a news source for reporting on allegations that are of interest to the public, Trump is simultaneously targeting journalism.
The lawsuit focuses on a series of articles by New York Times reporters Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, David Barstow and Gabriel J.X. Dance, as well as a nonfiction book “Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success,” by Craig and Buettner. Throughout the articles and the book, the journalists state that Trump’s father, Fred Trump, passed his immense wealth on to his son, which challenges the long-held narrative that Trump built his fortune off a modest loan and worked his way up the corporate ladder.
The suit also targets the New York Times’ reporting on comments from John Kelly, Trump’s former chief of staff, during the 2024 election. Kelly stated in his interview that Trump had “made admiring statements about Hitler,” and that he “meets the definition of a fascist.” Despite Florida’s criteria for defamation, Trump argued that the coverage was constituted of malicious, libelous reporting.
A democratic government relies upon an informed public. Citizens cannot vote in ways that align with their values if information on those elected officials is restricted. This is not the first time Trump has sued a major news agency over its reporting. The president sued the Wall Street Journal, CBS and ABC for defamation earlier this year. CBS and ABC both forked over the settlement in each of their respective lawsuits. Trump specifically targets media outlets that oppose him or represent him in a negative light. Whether someone supports the current president or not, one can agree that attempting to suppress the news infringes upon constitutional free speech.
As more news sources are pressured to bend to the president’s power and influence, other independent journalists will begin to censor themselves to avoid persecution. If journalists are not free to discuss matters concerning the president, then citizens cannot be properly informed about their own elected officials. Educated voters are the forefront of a functioning democracy, and without a free press, that relationship cannot function.
An attack on journalism is an attack on an informed public, and an uninformed public is an attack on democracy. Trump should not and cannot sue a media outlet for their portrayal of his actions simply because it may damage his reputation. This lawsuit is a direct attack on free speech, which is protected in the First Amendment of the Constitution. A lawsuit against any news source that reports on or criticizes the actions of a government official is an obvious attempt to suppress media coverage, which is immensely concerning.
The founding of the United States relied on critical, opinionated journalism such as “Common Sense” by Thomas Paine and the Federalist Papers. Even if Alexander Hamilton was not technically a journalist, each of these revolution-era documents was published with the intent of commenting on the state of politics. The American Revolution was stirred from the suppression of an overbearing government, and the First Amendment stemmed from that value that the Founding Fathers held. Without free speech, the government would never have developed into the democracy we know today because the population would not have been exposed to strong opinions or policy criticisms.
The president has less than a month to refile his lawsuit in compliance with Rule 8. Independent journalists can only hope that the court does not yield to Trump’s lawsuit, and if it does, the New York Times must continue to push back by reporting on political matters as its reporters see fit.
Journalism is the truth. If the truth is ugly, then journalism does not flatter. News stations must be permitted to spread the truth, and if they are persecuted for doing so, it is at the risk of free press and American democracy.
Contact Emma Lynch at [email protected]
