In a significant legal victory for the Washington Post, a federal judge in Florida has thrown out Donald Trump's $3.8bn defamation lawsuit against the newspaper. The suit stemmed from a 2023 article that reported a bank with ties to the pornography industry helped fund Trump's social media operation, Truth Social.
Judge's Ruling on Summary Judgment
Tampa district court judge Thomas Patrick Barber, a Trump appointee, granted summary judgment to the Washington Post on Thursday. Barber ruled that Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) had "failed to present evidence that would allow a jury to find by clear and convincing evidence" that the Post acted with actual malice, the required standard for defamation claims involving public figures. A full opinion is expected to be released later.
Background of the Lawsuit
The lawsuit originated from a 2023 Washington Post article alleging that TMTG sourced funds from "an obscure financial entity with connections to a Caribbean-island bank that bills itself as a top payment service for adult entertainment sites" as it built Truth Social. The article claimed that Trump Media paid a $240,000 "finder's fee" for arranging an $8m loan deal with ES Family Trust, and that the fee recipient was Entoro Securities, a brokerage linked to the CEO of Digital World, a shell company that merged with TMTG in 2024.
Trump's Claims and Post's Correction
Trump argued that the article was an "egregious hit piece" and part of a "years-long crusade" against him. However, the Post issued a correction in May 2024, stating: "Discovery in the ongoing litigation has established that Trump Media didn't pay a loan referral fee of $240,000, as was stated in the article and was based on The Post's reporting at the time of publication." The correction also noted that the mention of non-disclosure to shareholders or the SEC was inaccurate because no such payment was made.
Broader Context of Trump's Media Lawsuits
This ruling is the latest in a series of legal defeats for Trump in defamation cases against media outlets. In April 2024, a Florida judge dismissed a lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal over a story about a letter to Jeffrey Epstein. Seven months earlier, another judge tossed a $15bn claim against the New York Times and Penguin. Also in April, TMTG dropped a defamation claim against the Guardian over a 2023 report on Russian-tied loans.
Reactions and Next Steps
A Washington Post spokesperson welcomed the ruling: "We are pleased with the court's decision and look forward to reviewing its written order upon release." TMTG, however, viewed the correction as a victory, stating: "After three years, The Washington Post finally admitted its harmful story was false. We believe a jury should decide whether these falsehoods were actionable and will evaluate whether to appeal last week's ruling in due course."
