The recent $787 million defamation settlement between Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems highlighted the potential risks for political ads on radio. In his most recent Broadcast Law Blog, David Oxenford discusses how the case serves as a reminder that defamation claims against public figures can result in substantial liability, although the bar for success in such claims remains high.
While not on the scale of Fox v. Dominion, Oxenford warns broadcasters about making sure they vet the content they run in political ads. In the blog, he gives several more local examples: “We saw, for example, President Trump sue a TV station in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, for claims made in national attack ads on his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. While Trump eventually dismissed the lawsuit, substantial legal fees were no doubt incurred. In the last election cycle, Evan McMullen sued several TV stations that refused to pull an ad that had edited some of his statements on CNN into an ad making him look like he accused all Republicans of being racist, when that was not what he in fact said. Even Roy Moore, the unsuccessful candidate for Senate in Alabama, pursued a lawsuit against one of the distributors of an attack ad that accused him of improper conduct with an underaged woman, which apparently did not happen with the identified individual.”
Broadcasters and media companies need to be cautious when running political ads that they know or have reason to believe are false, as they can also face liability. The Fox case emphasizes the importance of being diligent in assessing non-candidate attacks and verifying the legitimacy of claims made in ads. Broadcasters should investigate if they receive a notice from an attorney stating that an attack ad is false and, if confirmed, remove the ad from the air.
While candidate ads are immune from censorship, noncandidate group ads can lead to liability if proven false. As the upcoming election cycle promises record ad spend and an earlier start to political ads than ever before, it could pay very well to do your research. Read all of Oxenford’s blog here.
