Well folks, it looks like we’ve got some drama on our hands! According to my colleagues Rosalind S. Helderman, Sarah Ellison, and Jeremy Barr, the trial between Dominion Voting Systems and Fox News has been delayed until Tuesday due to some last-minute settlement talks. But if things don’t work out, the jurors will have to decide whether Fox’s repetition of Trump’s baseless election fraud claims meet the Supreme Court’s standard of “actual malice.” Sounds serious, but let’s break it down.

Now, us over at The Daily 202 may not be lawyers, but the Supreme Court’s ruling in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan basically says that news outlets can’t just report lies about public figures without consequences. They need to have known they were lying and acted with reckless disregard for the truth. In other words, they can’t just make stuff up willy nilly.

The background of this case is pretty wild. It all started when Public Safety Commissioner L.B. Sullivan sued the New York Times for libel over inaccuracies in an ad that was critical of the police in Montgomery, Alabama. He won a $500,000 judgment in lower courts, but the Times prevailed at the Supreme Court in a unanimous 9-0 decision. Chief Justice William J. Brennan Jr. wrote that debate on public issues should be “uninhibited, robust, and wide-open,” which is a fun way of saying that people can say whatever they want about the government and public officials, as long as it’s not knowingly false.

This high standard for libel cases makes it tough for public figures to win, but Dominion Voting Systems is giving it their best shot by seeking $1.6 billion in damages. They’re focusing on 20 statements about the company made by Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, and Fox hosts Maria Bartiromo, Jeanine Pirro, and Lou Dobbs. Some people are even calling this trial a “symbolic referendum on the truth-challenged ‘alternative facts’ culture” that defined the Trump presidency. Yikes.

Here’s the kicker: Fox News is denying all of Dominion’s allegations and saying that this trial is actually an attack on the First Amendment. They’re claiming that Dominion’s lawsuit is a “political crusade in search of a financial windfall” and that their constitutional rights are on the line. Wow, talk about a bold defense.

Now, some conservatives are hoping that the Supreme Court will use this case to revisit libel law and the “actual malice” standard. Two conservative justices, Neil M. Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas, are on record saying that this standard is too high and needs to be reconsidered. Justice Thomas specifically cited “the proliferation of falsehoods” as a reason for change. But if they do loosen restrictions on libel findings, it could spell trouble for conservative media outlets like Fox News. Be careful what you wish for, folks.

In any case, this trial is sure to be interesting. Will Dominion Voting Systems get their $1.6 billion? Will Fox News be held accountable for spreading lies? Will we all learn a valuable lesson about the dangers of disinformation? Stay tuned, folks.

Serious News: washingtonpost