Trump sues The New York Times for defamation, seeks $15 billion | AP News
By: DAVID BAUDER (AP News)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump has added The New York Times to the list of media companies he's challenged in court, filing a $15 billion defamation lawsuit that targets four of its journalists in a book and three articles published within a two-month period before the last election.
In a Truth Social post announcing the lawsuit early Tuesday, Trump called the Times "one of the worst and most degenerate newspapers in the nation's history" and a virtual mouthpiece for Democrats. The lawsuit was filed in U.S.
The Times called the lawsuit meritless and an attempt to discourage independent reporting. "The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics," spokesman Charlie Stadtlander said.
It follows lawsuits Trump has filed against ABC News and CBS News' "60 Minutes," both of which were settled out of court by the news organizations' parent companies. Trump also filed a lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and media mogul Rupert Murdoch in July after the newspaper published a story reporting on his ties to wealthy financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The lawsuit names a book and an article written by Times reporters Russ Buettner and Susanne Craig that focuses on Trump's finances and his pre-presidency starring role in television's "The Apprentice."
Trump sparred with a pair of reporters on Tuesday before he and first lady Melania Trump departed for a state visit to the United Kingdom. He told one of the journalists he has a "lot of hate" in his heart.
Trump said in the lawsuit they "maliciously peddled the fact-free narrative" that television producer Mark Burnett turned Trump into a celebrity — "even though at and prior to the time of publications defendants knew that President Trump was already a mega-celebrity and an enormous success in business." The 85-page lawsuit also attacks claims the reporters made about Trump's early business dealings and his father, Fred.
Trump also cites an article by Peter Baker last Oct. 20 headlined "For Trump, a Lifetime of Scandals Heads Toward a Moment of Judgment." He also filed a lawsuit against Michael S. Schmidt for a piece two days later featuring an interview with Trump's first-term chief of staff, John Kelly, headlined "As Election Nears, Kelly Warns Trump Would Rule Like a Dictator."
In the lawsuit, Trump claimed The Times "could not accept President Trump's win in 2016 and could not fathom his winning again in a landslide." It wasn't a part of the case, but Trump attacked the newspaper's "deranged" editorial endorsement of opponent Kamala Harris last year.
"The 'Times' has engaged in a decades long method of lying about your Favorite President (ME!), my family, business, the America First Movement, MAGA and our Nation as a whole," Trump said on Truth Social. "I am PROUD to hold this once-respected 'rag' responsible."
None of Trump's media lawsuits have made it to court, but in court papers, he claimed the settlements with ABC and CBS as part of his "successful undertaking to restore integrity to journalism."
The president has also been involved in a lawsuit by The Associated Press over restricting the news organization's access to cover him in retaliation for its decision not to follow his executive order to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
An expert on libel law said Trump's case is frivolous, but serves a larger purpose.
"The complaint is full of bluster but short on any allegations of specific false statements of fact that would meet the rigorous standards for defamation claims brought by public figures," said Katie Fallow, deputy litigation director at Columbia University's Knight First Amendment Institute. "Trump's new lawsuit appears designed not to vindicate any genuine reputational harm, but to impose crushing legal costs on media organizations and create a chilling effect that will deter future critical coverage of Trump's conduct and business dealings."
The Times' Stadtlander said that the news organization "will continue to pursue the facts without fear or favor and stand up for journalists' First Amendment right to ask questions on behalf of the American people."
Penguin Random House, publisher of Buettner and Craig's book, "Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father's Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success," said it stands by the book and its authors.
Answering questions from the news media Tuesday as he departed the White House for a trip to London, Trump seemed miffed when an Australian Broadcasting Corp. reporter asked about his level of business activity since his return to office. Trump replied, "You're hurting Australia very much right now, and they want to get along with me."
He said Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would be visiting him at the White House soon and "I'm going to tell him about you. You set a very bad tone."
When the reporter continued to ask questions in a loud voice, Trump hushed him by saying, "quiet," and turned to Jonathan Karl of ABC News for a "nicer tone."
But Trump also lit into Karl, too. The two men have known each other for many years.
Karl asked about Attorney General Pam Bondi's comments that she will go after hate speech after the killing of influential conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Karl said even some of the president's allies consider hate speech to be free speech and, therefore, protected by the Constitution.
Trump responded by telling Karl the administration would "probably go after people like you, because you treat me so unfairly, it's hate. You have a lot of hate in your heart."
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Domestic Terrorist-in-Chief and Anti-Free Speech Crusader Donald Trump wants the New York Times and Penguin Random House to pay him $15 billlion because they told the truth.
Meanwhile, Trump threatened a reporter, Jonathan Karl, with prosecution because Trump doesn't like what he wrote.
MAGAs voted for this.
This is potentially the most ruinous suit (for him) that he has threatened yet. The New York Times has always meticulously sourced stories about Trump's corruption. In 2018 they revealed the tax scam Trump had run with his parents . He never sued them.
If he wants a bunch of very embarrassing stuff to become more widely known this is the way to do it.
Let's hope there is no out of court settlement in Trump's favor.
I think it will fade away. He is blowing smoke.
He sued the Wall St Journal a few months ago. You dont hear anything about it anymore.
I haven't heard that the lawsuit against the Wall St. Journal was dismissed. Until that happens, the lawsuit remains pending and could be set for trial. Most cases take a long time and sometimes nothing happens for several months, then a lot of activity occurs.
If Trump dismisses his lawsuits without reaching an agreement with the parties he sued, he leaves himself open to being sued for malicious prosecution.
Although Karl did write a book about the last year of the first Trump presidency that I guess was a little unfriendly, Karl is generally seen as a "bothsideser" who has often gone way too easy on Trump.
Trump looked kind of mentally impaired when he confronted Karl today, if anyone was wondering.
Trump appears to be mentally impaired every day now.
I saw a photo of his mouth drooping on the right side
Probably better grounds for the NYT to countersue Trump, the angry old man.
If I remember correctly Jonathan Karl was one of the reporters Trump talked to the night Charlie Kirk was killed.
mirror, mirror. lol, what a dufus, surrounded by multiple dufuses that let him do very unadvisable things every day.
He appeared to be on the brink of incoherence.
The problem is that Trump has the power of the presidency. Thus he can sue for show and then pressure the other side to settle based on private threats he can make with the power that has been irresponsibly handed him.
In result, it looks like a win for him even in cases where he would likely lose.
Only off by a factor of 3700. There were 80+ thousand deaths from drugs last year in the USA.
And he was not speaking worldwide either because that number is 600 thousand.
Back in the spring at a cabinet meeting Pam Bondi claimed her department had confiscated enough fentanyl to kill 300 million people. Likely Trump had that false factoid rolling around in his head the other day.
He is so soft. What a whiny baby.
www.dailykos.com /stories/2025/9/16/2343832/-The-New-York-Times-has-done-so-much-for-Trump-but-it-s-never-enough
The New York Times has done so much for Trump—but it's never enough
by Oliver WillisDaily Kos StaffFollowView Profile 4-5 minutes
Following months of mainstream media capitulation toward President Donald Trump and his administration, Trump filed a $15 billion lawsuit on Monday night against The New York Times.
In his suit , which absurdly cites his Electoral College victory and his status as a bestselling “author,” Trump accuses the Times of “smears” by accurately reporting on his statements and actions.
“The Times is a full throated mouthpiece of the Democrat Party,” Trump falsely alleges. The statement ignores decades of the Times furthering right-wing propaganda and elevating attacks on the Democratic Party and the left.
In a statement the Times said Trump’s suit “has no merit” and “is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting.”
Trump’s suit against the Times shows that even when the paper bends over backward for him, he will still be resentful of accurate reporting. Since he was sworn in for a second term, there have been several instances of obsequious and downright false reporting from the Times in Trump’s favor.
The paper referred to the current era as “the age of Trump” in June, a month after taking his claim — which went against his entire history as a political figure —that he would pull back support for tax increases on the wealthy as an honest statement.
In perhaps the most dishonest moment for the “paper of record” in Trump’s second term, the Times in February portrayed a Black voter supporting Trump as merely an “artificial intelligence start-up worker,” without informing readers that the supporter also happens to be the communications director for the Houston Young Republicans.
To be sure, the Times has reported accurately on numerous Trump scandals, corruption, and bigotry, but the paper’s coverage— led by star reporter Maggie Haberman — has been friendly to Trump and often regurgitated his falsehoods without calling him out. In her reporting on Trump, Haberman has shied away from noting to readers when he has clearly lied, such as this 2018 report that instead said Trump “ repeatedly refused to accept a number of seemingly agreed-upon facts.” In a 2020 story , instead of directly addressing Trump’s racism, Haberman’s reporting mentioned that he was merely “stoking white fear and resentment.”
Trump’s suit is just the latest in a barrage of legal action against media outlets. He sued the Des Moines Register for conducting polls, he sued Facebook parent Meta for banning his account after he incited violence, and he sued Fox owner Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal for reporting on his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, among others.
Many of these outlets have settled with Trump, even after legal experts have made clear the suits lack merit and have been vehicles for extortion and bribery-style payments. CBS News’ parent Paramount is under investigation by congressional Democrats after the Trump administration approved a merger soon after Paramount decided to settle his suit. ABC News parent Disney also cut a check to Trump over a specious claim.
Related | Apparently, the Washington Post can't stomach calling out Kirk's racism
Simultaneously, outlets like the Washington Post under Trump backer Jeff Bezos have pivoted pro-Trump. The paper recently fired an opinion columnist who criticized Charlie Kirk’s racist views after he was murdered.
The mainstream media apparently believed that Trump would back off after they curried favor with him and paid him off. Trump clearly didn’t agree to that deal and he is still targeting them for telling the truth.