ABC News’s decision to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by President-elect Trump is sending a chill through the media, with press organizations suggesting it is a major blow.
“It should not be seen as normal for powerful elected officials to wage legal campaigns against members of the press and their employers,” Caroline Hendrie, executive director of the Society of Professional Journalists, told The Hill on Monday.
“We are concerned that even the perception that media organizations must offer large payouts to settle legal challenges from public officials will have a chilling effect on the kind of independent and fearless reporting that our nation needs to hold the powerful to account,” she added.
Trump and ABC reached a $15 million settlement after anchor George Stephanopoulos said on air that Trump had been found liable for rape. A New York jury found Trump had sexually abused and defamed the writer E. Jean Carroll but did not find that Trump was liable for rape.
Trump at a wide-ranging news conference Monday signaled he could be emboldened by the outcome of the ABC lawsuit and go after other news outlets he feels have treated him unfairly.
“I’m doing this not because I want to. I’m doing this because I feel I have an obligation to,” Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago, calling it “very important” to have a “fair media.”
Trump has a long history of using litigation as an effective weapon against the media, and ABC’s decision was widely seen as an effort to avoid a lengthy and potentially embarrassing battle for the network in court.
But several press freedom advocates told The Hill it could send the wrong message to any news organization that finds itself in Trump’s legal crosshairs.
“Trump has a history of using libel accusations to quash criticism, and it's something that news organizations will have to contend with going forward,” said Lisa Zycherman, deputy legal director at Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
Trump has frequently feuded with major television networks, and he and ABC have had a fraught history.
The president-elect repeatedly attacked ABC anchors David Muir and Linsey Davis after they moderated his only debate with Vice President Harris in September. Trump argued there was no way he would get a fair debate on ABC, in part pointing to the Stephanopoulos incident.
A representative for ABC News did not respond to a request for further comment on the settlement.
Trump appears to be headed to the White House with increased leverage over the media.
In the weeks before Election Day, two major outlets — the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times — held back on decisions to endorse in the presidential race. Both decisions were seen as efforts to if not court Trump, at least sidestep his wrath.
Trump during the 2024 campaign threatened to take away the broadcast license of NBC. He sued CBS last month over a “60 Minutes” interview with Harris he claimed was manipulated to cast her in a positive light.
Trump suggested Monday he could file a lawsuit over an unfavorable poll put out in early November by The Des Moines Register. The poll, conducted by J. Ann Selzer, found Harris leading Trump in Iowa by 3 percentage points. The poll ended up being widely off; Trump won Iowa by 14 percentage points.
“In my opinion, it was fraud, and it was election interference,” Trump said Monday.
Nathaniel Rakich, a senior editor at FiveThirtyEight, wrote on the social platform X that Trump’s threat was “disturbing.”
“This would obviously be a baseless lawsuit, but just saying this has a chilling effect, and most pollsters don't have the financial resources for a legal battle,” he wrote.
Some in the media have tried to send peace signals to Trump.
Jeff Bezos, the owner of the Washington Post, which famously introduced the “Democracy dies in darkness” motto during Trump’s first presidency, has spoken warmly of Trump since his election victory. Bezos is expected to meet with the president-elect this week.
Marc Benioff, the owner of Time magazine and CEO of Salesforce, has also praised Trump and said he looked forward to working together after the magazine named Trump its “Person of the year.”
Trump traveled to New York City last week and rang the bell at the New York Stock Exchange to highlight the honor from Time. During that event, he signaled his relationship with the media seemed to be improving, but also underscored how quickly it could change.
“The media’s tamed down a little bit. They’re liking us much better now, I think,” Trump said. “If they don’t, we’ll have to just take them on again, and we don’t want to do that.”
