Smartmatic, a voting technology company, has settled a defamation lawsuit against the right-leaning television network One America News (OAN). The lawsuit accused OAN of falsely claiming that Smartmatic rigged the 2020 U.S. presidential election in favor of Joe Biden. The terms of the settlement are confidential, but Smartmatic voluntarily dismissed its lawsuit against OAN.
Smartmatic had estimated that OAN’s false claims significantly reduced its business value. The lawsuit was part of several accusing right-leaning media of spreading election misinformation to increase viewership and advertising revenue.
Smartmatic still has pending lawsuits against Fox News and Newsmax over their election coverage, seeking $2.7 billion in the Fox lawsuit. Last year, Dominion Voting Systems reached a $787.5 million settlement with Fox.
OAN, which positioned itself to the right of Fox and Newsmax, suffered financial setbacks in 2022 when Verizon and AT&T’s DirecTV stopped carrying its programming. Smartmatic accused OAN of causing irreparable harm by spreading disinformation about the election and its technology, eroding trust in the democratic process.
In court papers, OAN argued that awarding Smartmatic more than $2 billion would silence a conservative voice in the “marketplace of ideas” protected by the First Amendment.
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