Newsmax reached a deal with Smartmatic just ahead of the right-wing media outlet’s trial for allegedly defamatory reporting on the voting technology company’s performance in the 2020 presidential election.
Terms of the agreement weren’t made public, but Newsmax said Thursday it was “pleased to announce it has resolved the litigation brought by Smartmatic through a confidential settlement.”
Jury selection was already underway in Delaware, where opening arguments were expected to begin next week.
Smartmatic alleged Newsmax pushed false claims that their voting systems had been “widely used” in the 2020 election and implied there were improprieties. The company’s equipment was used only in Los Angeles County during that election. Democrats won there handily, as expected. No evidence of wrongdoing by Smartmatic has been presented.
According to Newsmax, its TV personalities were simply reporting on claims by “well-known” figures representing the interests of Donald Trump, who lost that presidential election by more by more than 7-million votes.
Newsmax told the court earlier this month that Smartmatic was asking for up to $600 million in damages, according to Reuters. The media outlet reportedly had only $67 million in assets at the end of 2022.
Smartmatic reached a confidential settlement deal with OAN in April as a result of that right-wing outlet’s similarly questionable reporting practices.
They still have an outstanding $2.7 billion lawsuit against Fox News for its coverage on their voting equipment. That right-wing cable operation reached a $787 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems in April 2023. Dominion was asking for $1.6 billion in their lawsuit.
“We are very pleased to have secured the completion of the case against Newsmax,” Smartmatic said in a statement posted online. “We are now looking forward to our court day against Fox Corp and Fox News for their disinformation campaign. Lying to the American people has consequences. Smartmatic will not stop until the perpetrators are held accountable.”
Fox News and its parent company also claim they were simply reporting on newsworthy events.
