One America News Network is suing Comcast and MSNBC for straight-up lying on national television about the network claiming that they literally are paid Russian propaganda.
OANN and the Herring Networks alleges that Rachel Maddow and MSNBC knew their statement was false and therefore acted in a reckless and malicious manner in order to damage the conservative news outlet.
According to the lawsuit,
36. The segment was part and parcel of Maddow’s obsession with drawing connections between President Trump and the Russian government. Maddow began by stating that President Trump gave OAN a “pass for access to the White House grounds and a permanent seat in the White House briefing.” Maddow noted that president Trump “quot[ed] this little news outlet and frequently t[old] people that they should be watching them.”
37. Maddow proceeded to report on Poulsen’s article in The Daily Beast. Maddow failed to mention Poulsen’s shadowy, criminal history.
38. Then, Maddow made a new, false and maliciously defamatory claim— a claim not in Poulsen’s Daily Beast article. Maddow said, “In this case, the most obsequiously pro-Trump right wing news outlet in America
really literally is paid Russian propaganda
” (emphasis added).
39. Maddow’s claim that OAN “really literally is paid Russian propaganda” is false and intended to malign and harm OAN. OAN is not paid by the Russian government. In fact, OAN has taken no money outside the Herring family whatsoever. None of OAN’s content comes from the Russian government.
D. Defendants’ Defense: “Literally” Doesn’t Mean “Literally”
40. On July 25, 2019, OAN wrote to Comcast and Maddow pursuant to code of Civil Procedure § 48, demanding a retraction of this false statement. Copies of these letters are attached hereto as Exhibits B and C.
41. Defendants refused to retract or correct their defamatory statement about OAN. On August 6, 2019, counsel for NBC Universal claimed that when Maddow—a graduate of Stanford and Oxford Universities and a Rhodes Scholar— said, “literally,” she actually meant, “‘not being literally true.’” (emphasis added).
You can read more of the lawsuit filed below: