Media Studies - 3rd Party Regulation (Dominion Vs. Fox)

The US 2020 election was the breeding ground of several major controversies in the world of the media. An example of which would be how the spread of misinformation has major consequences and can be regulated by 3rd parties instead of only the government and the corporations themselves. This most prominently happened in the case of Dominion Voting Systems V. Fox, in which Dominion had sued Fox News for defamation. Dominion claimed that Fox had knowingly spread misinformation about Dominion being corrupt and having faulty voting systems, when in reality they knew they didn't, by having attorneys of Donald Trump (Sidney Powell specifically) claim on-air that the election was stolen due to Dominions voting machines. Dominion obviously sought to be reimbursed for the damages this had caused, as states no longer wanted to use their voting machines. They sued Fox News for $1.6 billions.

During the suit, in discovery, it was found that Fox Executives and Fox news anchors themselves had said in private and believed that the stories Sidney Powell and Rudi Giulliani had spread were obviously fake. However days later they claimed live on-air that the election indeed was rigged, going against their own beliefs and evidence. In May 2023, Fox and Dominion had settled out of court for a grand total of $786 million. Fox decided to do this as they feared that going to court would bring up further bad press and destroy their reputation even further, leading to even more losses.

Compared to other forms of media like social media, Fox News are liable for what the people that come on it say on the platform, as they are not protected by US Law section 230, as the law only applies to internet companies. Regarding the issues of freedom of speech, defamation and actual malice with the intent of spreading misinformation should definitely have people being held accountable for their actions. Especially when the media corporation allowing the spread of misinformation don't hold the believes themselves, as it was in the case of Fox.