Dominion Settlement

I am disappointed. 

The Fox-Dominion settlement wasn't enough.

The settlement money wasn't enough. For Dominion, the lawsuit could be resolved with money. But for me it was only about the money insofar as the judgement might be large enough that Fox couldn't treat this as simply the cost of doing business. Fox makes about $14 billion a year. The judgement is about two weeks' earnings. Just a blip for them.

CBS headline

The settlement didn't square things with Dominion, not to my mind. I realize that a forthright admission by Fox that they misinformed the public may have been utterly impossible for Fox. There is the second lawsuit on deck, by Smartmatic. An open admission of guilt would mean Fox would have no defense. But the settlement did not contradict the Fox assertion that Dominion's machines rig elections.

Who believes that nonsense? Enough people that election clerks and county commissions all across America are on notice that choosing a Dominion vote tabulating machine is "controversial." Here in Jackson County, Oregon earlier this month a delegation of about 40 Republican activists met with the County Commission to demand that votes be hand-counted. The new Medford newspaper, the Rogue Valley Times, carried a story about this, quoting residents who said they doubted their votes were correctly counted. One resident was quoted saying, "I think we need to ban machines here. Stop using these. Hand-count the votes." The attendees had come from a presentation the prior night sponsored by the local Republican Party.

Most significant, though, was the comment by County Commissioner David Dotterer. This county's election office received this painted message shortly after the 2020 election: "VOTE DON'T WORK. NEXT TIME BULLETS."

Photo by Christine Walker, Jackson County Clerk

Dotterer didn't defend the county's voting system with its recounts and audits, nor its long-time County Clerk, a Republican. He was non-committal. He doesn't disagree or attempt to persuade them. Fox and Trump had laid a groundwork of doubt.  Dotterer was quoted:

I’m not gonna pass any judgment on it right now. I’m just absorbing information from various people, so I’m gonna leave it at that. I found the discussion very interesting and very forthright.

County officials all across America will face the same situation. In an arena where they would authorize updated election equipment, Dominion is tainted. Nothing but a clear, consistent message from Fox that they have no evidence that the Dominion machines were anything but trustworthy might change the story. That didn't happen.

The settlement did not repair the injury to truth. To facts. To reality.

Here is what Fox wrote in a statement:

We acknowledge the Court's rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false. This settlement reflects FOX's continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards. We are hopeful that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a divisive trial, allows the country to move forward from these issues.

"Continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards." Savor that statement. Read it a second time, mouthing the words and hold them in your mouth like a sour lemon. Own the reality of this moment in our history. Down is up. War is peace. 

The settlement reflects that they flouted journalistic standards to please their audience, but for their public statement Fox asserts the exact opposite. I am not cynical enough to have anticipated this moment. I did not expect to be lied to so brazenly and so immediately.

Yes, I am disappointed.

One last thing: There is a bright spot in this moment. We have a local news source again. The mismanagement and ultimate failure of my community's newspaper, The Mail Tribune, made space for a successor, the Rogue Valley Times, which reported on the county meeting. I am grateful to them. There is also a second newspaper, now covering some Jackson County news, The Daily Courier. I urge local readers to subscribe to both.