Appeals Court Sides With CNN Over Trump
Appeals Court Sides With CNN Over Trump
The News
A panel of appeals court judges on Nov. 18 upheld a ruling against President Donald Trump in a case he brought against CNN.
Trump did not adequately show that CNN defamed him when it reported that he promoted what it described as the “Big Lie” when challenging results from the 2020 presidential election, judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit concluded.
Trump said that the phrase was intended to link him to Adolf Hitler and propaganda used by the Nazis in Germany, but the term is ambiguous enough to cast doubt on that allegation, according to the new ruling.
“Trump has not adequately alleged the falsity of CNN’s statements. Therefore, he has failed to state a defamation claim,” the court stated.
Trump had also argued that the district judge should have analyzed more than the five statements he outlined in his complaint, but those statements included CNN’s usage of the Nazi-linked term, the panel said.
Timeline
U.S. District Judge Anuraag Singhal in 2023 had dismissed the lawsuit, finding CNN’s usage of the “Big Lie” term was repugnant but not defamatory.
Reactions
“Second, Trump’s argument hinges on the fact that his own interpretation of his conduct—i.e., that he was exercising a constitutional right to identify his concerns with the integrity of elections—is true and that CNN’s interpretation—i.e., that Trump was peddling his ‘Big Lie’—is false. However, his conduct is susceptible to multiple subjective interpretations, including CNN’s,” the per curiam opinion from Circuit Judges Elizabeth L. Branch, Adalberto Jordan, and Kevin Newsom said.
What's Next
The panel also rejected Trump’s attempts to allow him to file an amended complaint or move for reconsideration from Singhal of the decision. The district court acted within its discretion when dealing with motions to amend and reconsider, according to the appeals court.
More
The same court held in a different case that one person’s subjective assessment is not rendered false by another person’s different conclusion.
UMass Dartmouth Running Back, 18, Stabbed to Death
Trump Vows 'AI Force,' Czar; Polls Name Change
Sep 20, 2026
Iran Sends Trump Three Conditions to End War
Sep 19, 2026
Faulty AI Intel Nearly Started War With China
Sep 19, 2026
German General Breuer Elected NATO's Top Officer
Sep 19, 2026
Nobel Laureate: War, Sanctions Crushing Iranians
Sep 19, 2026
Dutch Police Disperse Violent Far-Right Hague Protest
Sep 19, 2026
GOP Midterm Odds Fade With 45 Days Left
Sep 19, 2026
Maher Rejects Tarlov's Claim Democrats Are Less Crazy
Sep 19, 2026
Patrick Clancy Breaks Silence After Ex-Wife Killed Kids
Sep 19, 2026
Trump Cuts Park Staff, Diverts Fees to DC
Sep 19, 2026
Holocaust Heirs Sue LA Museums Over Looted Art
Sep 19, 2026
Trump's Fed Chair Hikes Rates, Defying White House
Sep 19, 2026
Miller Drives Push to Deport Illegal Immigrant Children
Sep 19, 2026
US Lifts Sanctions on Eritrea's Military, Ruling Party
Sep 19, 2026
Air Force Admits US Has Space Weapons
Sep 19, 2026
Turkey Revokes License of Iran's Mellat Bank
Sep 19, 2026
Billionaire Ratcliffe Blasts Britain Over Immigration, Taxes
Sep 19, 2026
Navajo Nation Flash Flood Kills Three
Sep 19, 2026
Explosions Over Riyadh Trigger Saudi Air Alerts
Sep 19, 2026
Sep 19, 2026