Trump's Truth Social files $1.5 billion lawsuit against 20 media outlets over alleged defamatory reports

By lauraharris // 2023-11-30

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Donald Trump's Truth Social platform, operated by Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), has filed a $1.5 billion lawsuit against 20 media organizations over alleged defamatory statements about the financial status of the company. The lawsuit, filed in the 12th Judicial Circuit Court of Sarasota County, Florida on Monday, Nov. 27, named Reuters, The Guardian, The Miami Herald and its executive editor Alex Mena, The Daily Mail, CNBC, Mediaite, The Hill, Forbes, Axios, The Daily Beast, Gizmodo, Salon.com, MarketWatch, New York Daily News, Newsweek, MSNBC, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, Benzinga and Rolling Stone for falsely reporting that the company has incurred a $73 million loss since its launch.

"This number was an utter fabrication," wrote the TMTG in its court filing. "Each defendant, in apparent coordination, reported the exact same false number within approximately 24 hours of one another, each citing a public Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") filing in which the mystery $73 million loss appears nowhere."

According to the TMTG, the $73 million loss reported by the media outlets is a mere fabrication. TMTG claims this coordinated effort has negatively impacted its ability to raise capital and pursue a merger with Digital World Acquisition Corporation, a Special Purpose Acquisition Company.

In actuality, TMTG only suffered a net loss of $31.6 million since its establishment in February 2021. The financial breakdown included a net loss of $59 million in the year ending December 31, 2021, a net profit of $50.5 million in the year ending December 31, 2022, and a net loss of nearly $23 million in the first six months of 2023.

In November, The Independent reported that TMTG, as indicated in the filing, has experienced financial challenges, with only $2.3 million in net sales and an overall loss of almost $23 million in the first half of 2023. This, in turn, has caused substantial losses and raised doubts about the company's viability. Furthermore, the TMTG claims that the media outlets failed to publicly apologize for the allegedly false reports or retract the defamatory articles, despite their demands. In response, the TMTG is seeking $1.5 billion in compensatory, special, and punitive damages, along with the income the media companies have generated from the reports. The company has requested a jury trial.

Trump supporters hail lawsuit filed against left-leaning media giants

Trump launched TRUTH Social, his own social media platform, to be a free speech zone for him and his supporters who are regularly censored for their conservative views on the platforms of tech giants like Twitter and Facebook. "We live in a world where the Taliban has a huge presence on Twitter, yet your favorite American President has been silenced. This is unacceptable," he stated back then as he emphasized the need for an alternative platform. (Related: BREAKING: Trump was censored by Twitter ‘under pressure from federal agencies’ before being banned.) No wonder the legal action has ignited a flurry of reactions across online communities, with most of his supporters hailing it. "Now that's a thermonuclear lawsuit," exclaimed one user on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Things are getting spicy. This man will not give up ever!" wrote another. "Let the floodgates open; the back door censorship must end," chimed in a concerned user, reflecting the widespread sentiment against perceived censorship on social media platforms. "Good, these people must be held accountable!" voiced another supporter, echoing the sentiment that the lawsuit is a step towards accountability for actions on social media. Head over to Trump.news for more stories about the former president and his social media platform. Watch this video discussing Trump's very own social media platform, TRUTH Social after he was banned from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. This video is from the DarylLawsonLive channel on Brighteon.com.

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Trump supporters hail lawsuit filed against left-leaning media giants

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