The Left Strikes Back…. Musk and Texas are their top enemies. Paxton fights on…
Media Matters for America has initiated legal action against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, claiming that its senior investigative reporter’s coverage of Elon Musk’s X app is being stifled by the AG’s announced investigation. The progressive watchdog group filed the lawsuit on Tuesday, following its report last month, which asserted that X hosted bigots and had compensated far-right extremists. Major companies like Apple, Disney, Sony, and Fox Sports responded by boycotting the platform in their advertising campaigns, prompting Paxton to announce an investigation into Media Matters for potential fraudulent activity related to the report.
After Texas’s far-right Republican AG Ken Paxton used his office to investigate Media Matters for reporting on Elon Musk’s X app serving ads next to extremist content,
X, in turn, filed a defamation lawsuit against Media Matters in a Texas federal court, presenting advertising data to show that only two users, including report author Eric Hananoki, saw an Apple ad next to the controversial content. X argued that the content follows users’ search history, and Media Matters had manufactured its results. The Office of the Attorney General in Texas, expressing concern over Media Matters’ alleged manipulation of data, announced its investigation on November 21. Missouri has also launched a separate investigation into the matter.
Paxton emphasized that his case aims to protect the First Amendment rights of Texans, and his office clarified that the investigation into Media Matters’s report is conducted under the Texas Business Organizations Code and the Deceptive Trade Practices Act. These laws empower the office to enforce against nonprofits engaging in fraudulent acts in or affecting the state of Texas.
🚨 Media Matters Sues Texas AG Ken Paxton Over Investigation into Reporting on Musk’s X App
MMFA has filed a lawsuit against TX AG Ken Paxton, alleging First Amendment violations due to his investigation into their reporting. @NBCNews
— The Intellectualist (@highbrow_nobrow) December 13, 2023
Media Matters, founded in 2004 as a progressive research and information center, is seeking a permanent injunction against Paxton’s investigation in a federal court in Maryland. The organization argues that the AG office’s request to scrutinize their sensitive journalistic and organizational documents would violate their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights. While Paxton’s investigation did not demand Media Matters to cease publishing its findings, the watchdog group claimed that fear of further retaliation led to the exclusion of draft articles on violent extremism from its report.
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The lawsuit further contends that Media Matters senior investigative reporter Eric Hananoki, a resident of Maryland, benefits from the state’s shield laws protecting journalists from disclosing statutorily protected, confidential sources. Media Matters argues that Texas’s investigation is baseless and arbitrary, lacking relevant connections to the state.
Elon Musk, the owner of X, welcomed Paxton’s probe, stating on the platform, “Fraud has both civil & criminal penalties.” X is also suing Media Matters, alleging unlawful interference in its relationship with advertisers. Simultaneously, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has initiated an investigation into Media Matters for potentially unlawful business practices, accusing the organization of attempting to defame X and harm free speech by persuading advertisers to withdraw support from the platform.
Senator Marco Rubio has voiced concerns about the boycott of X, urging consistency among companies in their decisions. Rubio questioned why these corporations boycotted X while continuing to do business with the China-owned social media platform TikTok, calling for a standard approach to safeguarding brand reputation on all social media platforms.
"The lawsuit accuses Paxton of infringing upon the First Amendment within the context of a dispute involving Elon Musk’s X app.
…calling Paxton’s probe an illegal reprisal conceived to penalize it due to its reporting on ad campaigns…"https://t.co/qzG62MAGs5
— DG Miller (@DGMiller5x5) December 14, 2023
The complex legal battle involving Media Matters, X, and government investigations underscores the challenges in navigating free speech, defamation claims, and the influence of major corporations in the digital age. As the legal proceedings unfold, it remains to be seen how these issues will impact the landscape of online platforms and the broader debate on free expression.
How the Left Sees it, fast clip from MSNBC
There is a reason why they tried their absolute best to impeach AG Paxton. Now he’s making @MediaMatters extremely uncomfortable as they are claiming he’s “violating their first amendment” rights, which is rich coming from them after they got so many anon accounts banned for… pic.twitter.com/1YKEuRo4oN
— 🇺🇲Salty Texan (@texan_maga) December 18, 2023
Major Points Discussed:
- Media Matters for America has filed a lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, alleging that its senior investigative reporter’s coverage of Elon Musk’s X app is being hindered by Paxton’s investigation.
- Media Matters reported that X hosted bigots and paid far-right extremists, leading major companies like Apple, Disney, Sony, and Fox Sports to boycott the platform in their advertising campaigns.
- X has countersued Media Matters for defamation in a Texas federal court, claiming that the watchdog group manipulated data and fabricated results in its report.
- Both Texas and Missouri’s attorneys general have launched investigations into Media Matters, with Texas citing potential fraudulent activity and Missouri examining potentially unlawful business practices.
- Media Matters is seeking a court injunction against Paxton’s investigation, arguing that it violates their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights. The legal battle highlights the challenges surrounding free speech, defamation, and the influence of major corporations in the digital era.
Al Santana, freelance writer for Whatfinger
Comments – Threads – Links
- Media Matters for America is suing Texas Attorney General #Ken Paxton in federal court, arguing that reporting by its senior investigative reporter on Elon Musk’s X app is being “chilled” by the AG’s announced investigatio- NTD News
- Media Matters for America sued Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in federal court late Monday, alleging that Paxton violated the First Amendment last month when he opened an investigation into the organization over its reporting into Elon Musk’s X app- Denise Cyr
- Soros Media Matters Sues to ‘PERMANENTLY BLOCK’ AG Ken Paxton From Investigating Them. It seems they are also concerned about discovery materials requested by Paxton. Nobody, that I am aware of, has ever forced Media Matters into discovery. “Media Matters – a far-left, Soros-funded, non-profit propaganda group – has filed a lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, claiming Paxton’s investigation into the organization is unlawful and infringes on its First Amendment rights. This comes after Paxton opened an investigation into Media Matters.” National Pulse
- The European Union is investigating the X social media app, formerly known as Twitter, over its content moderation practices amid the ongoing Israel–Hamas conflict- Mike Izzo
- Media Matters for America filed a lawsuit on Monday against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, alleging he violated the First Amendment by launching an investigation into the organization over its investigation into X, formerly known as Twitter- The Daily Beast (Left)
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The balls on these f*cktards! George Soros and Media Matters “go f*ck yourself” Soros Media Matters Sues to ‘PERMANENTLY BLOCK’ AG Ken Paxton From Investigating Them. Media Matters – a far-left, Soros-funded, non-profit propaganda group – has filed a lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, claiming Paxton’s investigation into the organization is unlawful and infringes on its First Amendment rights. This comes after Paxton opened an investigation into Media Matters following its report alleging that advertisements from major companies ran beside pro-Hitler and antisemitic content on a social media platform, known as X. Following the report, heavy-weight companies including Disney, Apple, and IBM proceeded to withdraw their advertisements from the platform. The row escalated when X executives castigated Media Matters, arguing the research technique it used to find the antisemitic content was not indicative of the average user’s platform use. X spokesmen have since assured that advertisements were not deliberately placed next to the antisemitic posts, which were subsequently demonetized. In the wake of the report, the owner of X, Elon Musk, initiated a lawsuit against Media Matters accusing the organization of unlawful interference with X’s advertiser relationships. Now, Media Matters has launched its own lawsuit against Paxton seeking to permanently halt his investigation. The ongoing suit does not accuse Musk and Paxton of collusion but simply claims that Paxton was among several public figures who quickly supported Musk’s position. The suit also alleges that Paxton’s office demanded a wide range of documents related to Media Matters’ reporting in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments, as well as journalist “shield” laws in Maryland and Washington DC.
