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Welcome to The Logoff: President Donald Trump is suing the New York Occasions for defamation, demanding $15 billion in damages as a part of his newest assault on the free press.
What does the lawsuit say? Trump alleges that three New York Occasions articles printed in 2024 have been written to undermine his marketing campaign within the closing stretch of the election, and the go well with names 4 Occasions journalists and the writer of a e-book by two of the reporters, as co-defendants.
The go well with additionally consists of aggrandizing descriptions of Trump’s profession, together with his “magnificent actual property achievements” and his “sui generis charisma and distinctive enterprise acumen.”
In an announcement, the Occasions mentioned that Trump’s go well with “lacks any reliable authorized claims and as a substitute is an try to stifle and discourage impartial reporting.”
What’s the purpose of the lawsuit? In idea, the go well with is meant to recoup damages for what it describes as “false, malicious, defamatory, and disparaging” reporting. In actuality, the criticism — and the eye-popping request for damages — is finest seen as half of a bigger sample of habits by Trump that’s supposed to suppress reliable, essential reporting on Trump’s life, marketing campaign, and administration by US information organizations.
Is Trump going to succeed? Nearly actually not. Defamation fits towards a public determine have to satisfy an especially excessive bar, referred to as precise malice, to succeed, and fact is an absolute protection.
What’s the massive image? Trump’s assaults on the media are supposed to coerce extra favorable protection of his administration. He has beforehand sued each ABC and CBS for his or her protection, extracting settlements value hundreds of thousands of {dollars}, and he has a pending $10 billion lawsuit towards the Wall Avenue Journal and its proprietor, Rupert Murdoch.
On Tuesday, he instructed ABC reporter Jonathan Karl that the Justice Division would possibly “go after individuals such as you since you deal with me so unfairly.”
And with that, it’s time to sign off…
Robert Redford, the legendary actor and director, died at this time at 89. The Washington Publish has a terrific listing of a few of his finest works right here (and how much journalists would we be if we didn’t point out his position as journalism legend Bob Woodward in All of the President’s Males), however I need to level to this clip, from A River Runs Via It, too. The movie, directed by Redford, is a stupendous adaptation of what Roger Ebert described as “one of many few good books of the twentieth century,” and it’s one which Redford fought onerous to get made. In the event you’re on the lookout for one thing to look at in his reminiscence, I extremely advocate it. Have a terrific night!