SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Governor Gavin Newsom on Friday, June 27, filed a defamation lawsuit against Fox News, alleging the network deliberately manipulated video content to create a false impression that he lied about a phone call with former President Donald Trump. The legal action seeks a substantial $787 million in punitive damages.
The lawsuit centers on a segment aired by Fox News that, according to Newsom’s filing, deceptively edited footage and commentary to suggest a timeline and substance of a conversation between the two political figures that was inaccurate. Newsom’s legal team contends this manipulation was intentional and aimed at damaging his reputation.
The Allegation of Manipulation
The core of Governor Newsom’s complaint lies in his assertion that Fox News presented a distorted account of his communication with President Trump. The lawsuit specifies that the network’s segment, by manipulating video, sought to portray Newsom as having been untruthful regarding the timing and content of a phone call he had with Trump.
The alleged manipulation, as outlined in the legal document, made it appear as though Newsom was directly contradicting a statement made by President Trump, thereby misleading viewers into believing the governor had deliberately misrepresented facts about their conversation.
The Disputed Phone Call
The dispute stems from public comments made by Donald Trump on June 10. During this appearance, the former president claimed he had spoken with Governor Newsom just “a day ago” and that he had told Newsom to “do a better job” regarding immigration raids and enforcement in California.
Newsom had previously offered his own account of the last conversation he had with Trump. According to Newsom’s statements, that call occurred late in the evening of June 6, which would have been early on June 7 EDT. Crucially, Newsom stated that during this specific conversation, the subject of the National Guard, often a topic related to border and immigration issues, was not discussed.
The lawsuit alleges that the Fox News segment in question edited Newsom’s statements or footage in a way that made his account appear to be a direct denial of Trump’s June 10 claim about the conversation’s timing and content, when, according to Newsom, their last interaction was on a different date and covered different subjects than those Trump mentioned on June 10.
Legal Basis and Demanded Damages
Governor Newsom’s lawsuit argues that Fox News committed defamation by knowingly or recklessly broadcasting false information about him through the alleged video manipulation. The filing asserts that the network acted with actual malice, a legal standard required for defamation claims involving public figures.
The demand for $787 million in punitive damages is a significant figure and, as noted in the original announcement of the lawsuit, serves as a clear reference to the amount Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems to settle a separate defamation lawsuit earlier in the year. This specific figure appears intended to underscore the gravity of the alleged misconduct and draw a parallel to previous high-profile defamation cases against the network.
Punitive damages, unlike compensatory damages, are not intended to reimburse a plaintiff for specific losses but rather to punish the defendant for egregious conduct and deter similar actions in the future. The sheer size of the demand signals the seriousness with which Governor Newsom’s team views the alleged defamation.
Path to Resolution
In a conditional offer outlined by his legal representatives, Governor Newsom stated that he would be willing to dismiss the lawsuit against Fox News. However, this potential dismissal is contingent upon specific actions by the network. Newsom’s lawyers have demanded that Fox News issue a full retraction of the allegedly defamatory claims and, critically, provide equal airtime for this retraction across its platforms.
This condition highlights Newsom’s stated primary objective as being the correction of the public record regarding the phone call, rather than solely the pursuit of financial compensation. The demand for equal airtime is a mechanism often sought by plaintiffs in media defamation cases to ensure the corrective information reaches the same audience as the original alleged falsehood.
The lawsuit was formally announced on Friday, June 27, marking the beginning of potentially lengthy and complex legal proceedings. The outcome could have significant implications for how news organizations handle political commentary and the editing of video content, particularly in the context of high-profile political figures and disputed claims.
Legal experts anticipate that the case will likely involve close scrutiny of the specific video segment, the editing process, and the internal communications at Fox News regarding the preparation and broadcast of the material about the Trump-Newsom phone call.
