Shareholders on both sides had balked at the plan, with issues including the outstanding court cases facing Fox as well as ongoing exposure to phone-hacking legal action at News Corp.
“It certainly would be devastating if Fox lost in court, as accusations of electoral rigging are obviously incredibly serious,” says Chris Hutchings, a partner at the law firm Hamlins. “A settlement would avoid further evidence being aired in court which could seriously damage the reputation not only of Fox but of the whole Murdoch empire.”
The case has been positioned as the most important test of US defamation law in a generation, which could curb the freewheeling and controversial style of broadcasting that has made Fox the most-popular news network and a $3bn-plus profit engine for Murdoch.
However, some analysts believe that the pre-trial stage of the case has already set a fresh precedent for US news coverage, even before the scheduled six-week court battle in front of a 12-person jury. “What applies to Fox applies to other media organisations,” says Alice Enders, another co-founder of Enders Analysis. “The pre-trial determination has been seismic. The judge has been clear already saying that Fox knowingly broadcast falsehoods. What we have seen serves as a real warning to other outlets looking to pursue a hard line. It sets a new bar for talk TV in the US in terms of what can or can’t be said by presenters.
public grilling preferable
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