Since its founding in 1996, Fox News has been nothing but controversial. From its MAGA loving morning show to primetime hosts who spread lies and propaganda, Fox News is undoubtedly a dangerous media organization. For decades, Fox has been able to spread unfounded claims without evidence, brainwashing voters into hating Democrats and supporting Republicans, without any real consequences, but this is finally starting to change. 

When Trump lost the 2020 election, many Republican voters were shocked and blindly believed Trump’s claim that the election was stolen. This message spread to Fox News, with host Jeanine Pirro claiming Dominion voting systems machines were rigged in favor of Biden. Such propaganda was quickly echoed by other Fox News hosts such as Maria Baritromo, Tucker Carlson, and Sean Hannity, fueling Trump’s messages to an even broader audience without any fact checking. 

As a result, Dominion decided to sue Fox News 1.6 billion dollars for defamation, claiming Fox deliberately spread false information causing irreparable damage and harm to Dominion. Fox asked for the claims to be dismissed on the grounds of the First Amendment, but was denied. 

This case has resulted in the release of information which reveals that some of the information Fox News hosts were sharing were actually known to be lies by FOX and such hosts. Tucker Carlson even stated, “Sidney Powell [a lawyer supporting the false claims of election rigging] is lying,” and that “it’s unbelievably offensive to me. Our viewers are good people and they believe it.” Even Fox chairman Rupert Murdoch mentioned that he believed it went too far all the way back in November of 2021. So why keep spreading unfounded rumors? Though we do not yet know for sure, it probably boils down to greed. Fox News wanted to keep their viewers engaged, even if it meant providing misinformation. 

In the end, this case has become about the First Amendment. To what extent should free speech apply and when is it possible to hold someone accountable for that speech? In this example, Fox News went too far; their deliberate spreading of false information is slander. And though the values of free speech should be upheld, Americans have gone too far recently, trying to protect even the falsest information as free speech. The lines between free speech and defamation have grown murky, which is what this case will strive to solve. Dominion will have to prove that these words have had a major negative impact on their business. If Dominion wins the case, all news organizations will have to improve editorial standards and fact checking, but if Fox News wins, it will strengthen the definition of free speech. Whatever side you support, make sure you always corroborate sources to check that what you are reading or hearing is the truth; as we have seen, lies can come from the places we least expect, like our media sites and political leaders.