Jeff–Saturday
Much of the media coverage this past week on a settlement reached on the first day of trial in the Dominion Voting Systems v. Fox News defamation lawsuit, got under my skin. So much so, that I decided to blog about it. But in a parody roughly based upon Mark Antony‘s soliloquy at Caesar’s funeral in Act III, Scene II of Shakespeare’s (who else) “Julius Caesar.”
The gist of what prompted my displeasure was watching the talking heads at some of the more liberal news networks tearing into Dominion and its lawyers for daring to settle this lawsuit. They would have preferred to see Dominion risk it all for the potential psychic joy many might find in weeks, if not months, of reporting on FOX stars and key executives badgered and roasted in court while fessing up to truths about lies they’d been telling for years.
Yes, that would have made terrific theater, but done nothing toward guaranteeing compensation for the victim.
It’s also unclear the extent to which any of that would affect FOX’s ratings dominance. After all, FOX is said to simply ignore reporting on anything it doesn’t wish its base to know—such as, for example, the amount or even the fact of its settlement with Dominion!
Bottom line, I see this as an expression of Fox’s critics’ anger at missing out on watching their longtime ratings nemesis relentlessly chastened as it twists in the wind on someone else’s nickel.
But we’re not talking about nickels. To be precise, Dominion would be passing on FOX’s 787.5 million dollar offer of settlement, a/k/a more than three-quarters of a billion dollars, a/k/a $787,500,000.00
WOW, those numbers remind me of some of the digits appearing in my new contract with my new publisher—more on that later.
So, here’s what I see as Mark Antony’s likely take on the masterful job done by Dominion and its lawyers:
FOX, CNN, MSNBC, lend me your ears.
I’ve come to bury Dominion, not to praise it.
The evil that networks do lives on;
The good is oft interrèd with their brands.
So it may be with Dominion. Murdoch
Hath told you Dominion was litigious,
And to strike at FOX was a grievous fault.
But Dominion pursued on undeterred,
Doing battle with Murdoch and his son.
(Murdoch is said an honorable man;
The same as others claim to be at FOX),
So they do not need me to speak for them.
Our besieged champion Dominion does,
‘Cause Murdoch views life as sacrilegious
When not seen as an honorable man.
For he brought many viewers home to FOX,
Along with ratings that filled its coffers,
Launching bitter lies at Dominion’s heart.
While FOX’s competitors whined and bantered,
Dominion showed itself of sterner
stuff.
Facing down Murdoch’s minions’s words and threats,
And claims to be an honorable man,
The court did see, behind Carlson et al,
Was Murdoch offering a kingly crown
To one who claimed in lies to have earned it.
Still, Murdoch stood in battle, toe-to-toe,
Until his sharp rebuke before the court.
But I speak not to explore Murdoch’s words,
Rather to reveal what I do now know:
All that we’ve learned we owe to Dominion,
Yet the media is faint in its praise.
Favoring schadenfreude over clear judgment?
Has envy driven their reason away?
Dominion did its job: FOX
surrendered.
To beat FOX ratings is another’s job––
Requiring far sterner stuff than banter.
Bravo, Dominion and its legal team, on a job well done.
Now for the promised announcement.
I’m thrilled beyond measure to announce that Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis has found a new home at Severn House/Canongate Books and his next adventure (Book #13) will be released in February 2024. It is set on Greece’s grand dame Aegean island of Syros–with New York City’s East Village in a supporting role–and features an ambitious cast of complex characters caught up in the most challenging societal issue of our time: the dark-side ramifications of Artificial Intelligence.
–Jeff
