Former U.S. President Donald Trump has filed a sweeping $15
billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, four of its
reporters, and Penguin Random House, claiming they deliberately damaged his
reputation and tried to derail his 2024 presidential campaign. The suit, filed
in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, accuses the
newspaper of spreading “false and defamatory” content about his business record
and character in an effort to prejudice judges, juries and voters. The
reporters named in the lawsuit are Susanne Craig, Russ Buettner, Peter Baker
and Michael S. Schmidt, with Penguin Random House targeted for publishing Lucky
Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the
Illusion of Success, a book critical of Trump written by Craig and
Buettner.
According to the filing, The New York Times published
long-form articles and an editorial endorsing Democratic opponent Kamala Harris
that Trump’s lawyers say portrayed him as a threat to democracy and a would-be
dictator. The lawsuit calls the Times “a full-throated mouthpiece for the
Democrat Party” and accuses it of running “industrial-scale defamation” to
undermine political opponents. Trump argues the reporting misrepresented his
achievements and ignored what he describes as “the greatest personal and
political achievement in American history” with his 2024 election win.
Letters attached to the lawsuit show that Trump’s legal team
demanded the Times and Penguin Random House stop making what they called “false
and defamatory statements.” Both media organizations rejected those demands.
David McCraw, a lawyer for the Times, defended its coverage, writing that the
complaint was built on “falsehoods” and a “deeply troubling notion that anyone
who dares to report unfavorable facts about a presidential candidate is engaged
in sabotage.” Carolyn K. Foley, senior vice president and associate general
counsel at Penguin Random House, responded that disagreeing with Trump’s
self-assessment does not amount to defamation.
The lawsuit seeks no less than $15 billion in compensatory
damages and additional punitive damages, making it one of the largest media
defamation claims in U.S. history. Legal experts note that defamation cases
brought by public figures face a high bar under the “actual malice” standard,
which requires proving that journalists knowingly published false information
or acted with reckless disregard for the truth. The case underscores Trump’s
long-running battle with mainstream media outlets and his willingness to take
on major news organizations as he seeks to frame himself as a victim of biased
coverage heading into the next election cycle.
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