Murdochs on Dominion’s witness list
March 29, 2023
Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan (pictured) are on the witnesses list of voting-machine maker Dominion for their landmark defamation trial next month. Lawyers have listed more than 50 witnesses that they intend to question during the six-week trial in Delaware, including the Murdochs, Fox News chief executive Suzanne Scott and Fox primetime stars Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham. Dominion wants $1.6 billion damages, alleging Fox News spread the false news of the rigging of the presidential election involving Dominion’s machines.
The 92-year-old Murdoch Snr has been deposed for hours as part of the litigation. In a hearing this week, Judge Eric Davis, who is overseeing the case, challenged arguments from Fox’s lawyers who opposed Rupert Murdoch’s appearance. The judge said he had read that the mogul was getting married for a fifth time, and this suggested he was “hardly infirm”.
Davis noted Murdoch is reported to be splitting his time between homes in Los Angeles, Montana, New York and London, and thus “doesn’t sound like someone who can’t travel from New York to Wilmington”. The judge will not rule on whether he will compel individuals to testify until at least next week.
Dominion’s lawyers also said they intended to call a producer who recently sued Fox News, alleging that the company’s lawyers did not properly prepare her for her deposition and that she was subject to gender discrimination. The producer was subsequently fired by Fox, which said she had shared privileged information and denied her allegations.
Fox News said: “Dominion’s needlessly expansive live witness list is yet another attempt to generate headlines and distract from the many shortcomings of its case.”
The trial is scheduled to begin on April 17th.