Dominion voting systems filed suit on Tuesday against two large conservative media outlets. Newsmax and One American News Network were both sued by Dominion along with businessman and former Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne.
The lawsuit claims that they were defamed by spreading accusations that it rigged the 2020 election for President Biden.
Dominion accused the two networks of defaming the company and its products by airing false reports that its machines switched votes from President Donald Trump to Mr. Biden.
The company also said Mr. Byrne repeatedly and falsely alleged that Dominion rigged vote tallies to steal the 2020 presidential election for Mr. Biden. In each of the three lawsuits, Dominion is seeking more than $1.6 billion in damages, citing lost profit and other costs.
“Newsmax helped create and cultivate an alternate reality where up is down, pigs have wings, and Dominion engaged in a colossal fraud to steal the presidency from Donald Trump by rigging the vote,” the suit against Newsmax says.
Among other claims, OAN and Newsmax alleged that the Dominion voting machines, which were used in 28 states, deleted millions of votes for Donald Trump – a claim that has “no basis in fact or reality,” the suits state.
Newsmax and OAN “knowingly and continuously sold the false story of election fraud in the 2020 presidential election with Dominion cast as the villain,” a representative for Dominion told reporters this week.
The suits also name OAN CEO Robert Herring as well as his son, OAN president Charles Herring, the Chief White House Correspondent for OAN, Chanel Rion, and a network personality, Christina Bobb.
A representative for Newsmax said that they have not yet reviewed the lawsuits but defended their reporting. While covering the 2020 election, Newsmax “simply reported on allegations made by well-known public figures, including the President, his advisors and members of Congress,” their statement reads.
“Dominion’s action today is a clear attempt to squelch such reporting and undermine a free press,” they continued.
Thanks to our friends at The WSJ for contributing to this article.
