Former President Donald Trump has filed a defamation lawsuit against the Des Moines Register and its former top pollster, J. Ann Selzer, over a polling error in the 2020 presidential election. The lawsuit, which was filed in Iowa’s Polk County on Dec. 17, maintains the newspaper and Selzer deliberately distorted polling data, contributing to “brazen election interference.” The suit asks for unspecified damages and requests the newspaper stop engaging in “deceptive and misleading acts” related to its polling activities.
The poll in question, published on November 2, 2020, showed Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, leading Trump by three percentage points in Iowa. Trump’s legal team says Selzer’s polling miss was not a simple mistake but an intentional act. According to the lawsuit, Trump believes the misrepresentation was intentional, and it claims the pollster knew the poll’s results would harm his chances.
It joins a string of similar suits filed by Trump’s team, including one in which ABC News settled a defamation lawsuit by donating $15 million toward a Donald Trump presidential library and delivering a public apology for misleading commentary aired during a segment anchored by the network’s George Stephanopoulos. Besides that, he has also threatened to sue other news outlets, like CBS News, which also faces a $1 billion lawsuit over an edited interview that Trump says was fraudulent and participated in election interference.
Legal experts say the lawsuits could have a chilling effect on news coverage, particularly of public figures. Roy Gutterman, a Syracuse University professor, said the lawsuits could have a “chilling effect on aggressive coverage of the Trump administration.” U.S. law provides strong protections for journalists when reporting on public figures, but Trump’s actions signal a more aggressive approach to pushing back against unfavorable media coverage.
The lawsuits have also continued despite various legal barriers, including the very difficult “actual malice” standard for proving defamation, which Trump’s attorneys have pursued with vigor against media organizations. Legal observers speculate that even if such suits were to fail, they may serve to wreak havoc in the operations of news organizations by forcing internal communications to light and making journalists available for deposition.
Trump’s defamation lawsuits will most likely continue to be a contentious issue, sparking debates over the balance between protecting the reputation of public figures and safeguarding the freedom of the press.
