ABC settles Trump defamation case with a $15 million donation

Zoe Tillman, Bloomberg News on Dec 14, 2024

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WASHINGTON — ABC has agreed to donate $15 million to Donald Trump’s future presidential foundation or museum to settle claims that one of its anchors defamed the president-elect in describing a past court verdict against him.

The settlement was disclosed in a court filing on Saturday. The agreement came one day after a federal magistrate judge in Miami ordered Trump to appear in-person next week for a four-hour deposition.

Trump accused ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos of defaming him when the journalist said he’d been found “liable for rape” during a March 10 interview with Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., on ABC’s "This Week." A jury found Trump civilly liable for sexually abusing writer E. Jean Carroll; the jury also found that Trump defamed Carroll by accusing her of lying to sell a book.

As part of the settlement, the network agreed to publish a note on its website saying that ABC News and Stephanopoulos “regret” the comments at issue. The network will also pay Trump’s lawyers $1 million in attorney fees.

The network said in a statement that it’s “pleased that the parties have reached an agreement to dismiss the lawsuit on the terms in the court filing.”

The ABC suit is one of a small but notable group of civil cases involving Trump that are pending as he prepares to reenter the White House. He has active cases against CBS and journalist Bob Woodward and publisher Simon & Schuster, and is appealing the dismissal of a suit against CNN.

As a defendant, Trump is facing multiple lawsuits seeking to hold him responsible for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and a defamation case filed by the “Central Park Five” over his comments at a presidential debate this year.

Trump has a history of suing the media over unfavorable coverage. Under the 1964 Supreme Court case New York Times v. Sullivan, public figures such as Trump have a higher burden to prove libel: That the defendant knew that the statement was false or was reckless. Trump and other conservative activists have urged the Supreme Court to reconsider that decision.

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(With assistance from Gregory Korte.)