In January, rumors that Paramount Global was considering a settlement for a seemingly unlikely lawsuit brought by President Trump against its CBS News division caused a stir, suggesting the company might be yielding to government pressure while seeking regulatory approval for its merger with Skydance Media.
About a month has passed, but the settlement hasn’t come to fruition yet. Now, Paramount seems to be gearing up for a counterattack. Their strategic approach in court involves several fronts. They argue that Trump is strategically choosing judges (judge-shopping), favoring courts where a sympathetic judge might handle the case. Additionally, they suggest that those suing the company agreed to arbitration clauses when using services provided by Paramount, the entertainment conglomerate. Furthermore, they are using the prospect of disclosing information about Trump’s financials, including his social media platform Truth Social and the cryptocurrency he launched, as a threat during the discovery process.
The most prominent instance of media trying to avoid being targeted by Trump is the legal dispute that has arisen. Many people view this lawsuit as unnecessary, and some even see it as a form of payment or bribery, if the media were to settle it. At its best, the settlement could be interpreted as an acknowledgement of a mistake in editing an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris; at its worst, it might appear as a payoff.
Besides CBS News, Trump has also aimed criticisms at other outlets. For instance, prior to his inauguration, ABC News consented to donate $15 million towards Trump’s presidential foundation or museum as part of a settlement for a defamation lawsuit. The lawsuit stemmed from George Stephanopoulos’ coverage which incorrectly stated he was found guilty of rape, when in fact he was found liable for sexual abuse. Similarly, Meta and X have reached agreements to settle lawsuits concerning the suspension of Trump’s social media accounts.
Trump and Paramount (CBS News) hold contrasting perspectives on this case. According to Trump’s account, the interview aired by CBS News was manipulated heavily to benefit Harris. In his view, specific answers were edited deceptively, misleading viewers. This alleged alteration of the interview, he argues, is a breach of Texas’ consumer protection law that prohibits deceptive advertising and also violates the “unfair competition” aspect of the Lanham Act.
In their own perspective, CBS considers the decisions they make editorially as an expression of freedom of speech, which is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
Upcoming in the case is a crucial determination: whether to dismiss it and move forward in a New York federal court. Recently, Trump amended the lawsuit to include Republican Congressman Ronny Jackson, his former physician based in Texas, in an effort to keep the case within the Northern District of Texas. This district has gained notoriety for handling lawsuits that support conservative legal agendas.
The presiding judge, Matthew Kacsmaryk, was appointed by Trump in 2017 and is a member of the Federalist Society since 2012. He oversees this litigation within the Amarillo division of the court. In his five years on the bench, he’s made rulings that oppose several initiatives from former President Biden, some of which were subsequently overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.
In his filing, lawyer Edward Paltzik stated that Representative Jackson hails from Texas and serves as the Congressman for the 13th Congressional District. This district encompasses a significant portion of the Northern District of Texas and lies entirely within this judicial district. Furthermore, it was noted that President Trump’s media businesses generate a large part of their profits in Texas. Given this, there is a strong connection between Texas and the central issue at hand, as the defendants aimed their deceptive services at Texas and this District, which are major media markets and population centers in the United States.
CBS, based in New York, contends in a recent filing that the lawsuit should not be heard in Texas because the 60 Minutes segment did not specifically target Texans over residents of other states. They refer to previous court rulings stating it would be unfair for media outlets with nationwide content distribution to be sued in Texas federal court solely due to its large population. Furthermore, in the filing, attorney C. Jason Fenton from Paramount stated, “The venue is incorrect in this district because a significant portion of the incidents or oversights leading to the claim did not take place within the Northern District of Texas. The interview with Vice President Harris was filmed and edited entirely outside Texas, and the plaintiffs do not even claim they watched the interview in Texas.
Paramount intends to shift the case towards arbitration based on the findings from the discovery process. They aim to uncover details about whether Trump or Jackson bought products or services, as well as if they agreed to settle disputes related to CBS’s services through arbitration.
Users are required to accept arbitration clauses upon creating accounts with Paramount+ or CBS.com. This means that any disputes or claims between you and the platform, concerning the services or the terms, will be resolved through individual binding arbitration or small claims court action. According to their terms of use, the validity and reach of this agreement will be determined by an arbitrator.
It’s uncertain if Trump’s disputes could be resolved through arbitration. Last year, Disney tried to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit brought by a doctor who had a fatal allergic reaction to food at a restaurant within one of Disney’s shopping centers, based on terms and conditions agreed to when signing up for Disney+ by her husband. The court might rule that Trump’s consumer fraud and unfair competition claims are not related enough to any arbitration agreements he may have signed upon buying services from Paramount, making them ineligible for arbitration.
The company’s request for discovery also encompasses details about the financial aspects of Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign organizations and Trump Media & Technology Group. It further asks for information regarding any legal ties the president might have with these two entities. Some documents that Paramount is asking for may potentially be shielded by executive privilege.
A jury trial is scheduled to begin in 2026.
This month, CBS made available the complete scripts and recordings of their 60 Minutes interview. At the time, they stated that the records demonstrate the broadcast was neither manipulated nor misleading. They further explained that when journalists edit interviews (for reasons like time, space, or clarity), 60 Minutes adheres to truth and what it considers beneficial for public viewing, all while navigating the limitations of television broadcasting.
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2025-02-21 03:26