Judge rules that Fox News cannot rely on their sparse fact-checks for defense in Dominion election fraud case

On April 11, Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis issued several key rulings pertaining to Dominion Voting Systems' upcoming defamation trial against Fox News for repeated lies that the company helped to supposedly rig the 2020 presidential election. Among the rulings was a decision that Fox News cannot use the rare instances where they attempted to fact-check election lies to push back on claims that their lies were defamatory. As CNN reported

The judge ruled that Fox can’t bring up broadcasts where reporters accurately fact-checked Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, to prove that other broadcasts that amplified those lies weren’t defamatory.

Those other broadcasts “are not relevant” to the case, Davis said, because “you can’t absolve yourself of defamation by putting someone else on at a different time” who told the truth about Dominion.

The judge's decision comes ahead of the trial, which is set to begin on April 17. Last month, a judge denied Fox News and Fox Corp.’s motions for summary judgment to dismiss the defamation case brought against them. The judge also granted in part Dominion Voting Systems’ summary judgment motion. Evidence that has been trickling out since late-February has revealed damning behind-the-scenes information about Fox News' decision to continue to push lies about the 2020 election and Dominion's involvement, despite knowing they were false.