Ladder: lawsuits against the press
A government, a government agency or an official sues a journalist or a news organisation, usually for defamation or breach of contract, whether the official acts in office or in a personal capacity. Lawsuits that fail can still cost the defendant years of work and large legal fees.
The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.
Pressure
Using state power short of prosecution to change coverage: regulatory threats, licence reviews, funding cuts, lawsuits by officials, official "fake news" or "foreign agent" labels, advertising pressure, tax audits.
| Date | Country | Head of government | What was done | Outcome | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 16, 2024 | Focal case United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180) | Donald Trump | President-elect Trump sued the Des Moines Register and longtime pollster Ann Selzer under Iowa's consumer fraud law over her final pre-election poll, which showed Kamala Harris ahead in Iowa days before Trump won the state; a judge later questioned whether the case could proceed without discouragin… Full entry | Ongoing (July 10, 2026) | 2 |
| April 22, 2025 | Focal case United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180) | Donald Trump | 60 Minutes executive producer Bill Owens resigned, saying corporate owner Paramount had begun supervising the program's content in new ways while it faced President Trump's lawsuit over a Harris interview and pursued a sale requiring federal approval; the program publicly said on air that it had lo… Full entry | Sustained (April 22, 2025) | 1 |
| July 1, 2025 | Focal case United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180) | Donald Trump | On July 1, 2025, Paramount, the parent company of the United States broadcaster CBS News, announced that it would settle for US$16 million a lawsuit brought by Donald Trump, the president of the United States, over how the CBS program 60 Minutes edited a 2024 interview with Kamala Harris, then vice… Full entry | Sustained (July 1, 2025) | 1 |
| July 18, 2025 | Focal case United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180) | Donald Trump | President Trump sued The Wall Street Journal, its owner Rupert Murdoch and two reporters for at least $10 billion, disputing the newspaper's report describing a bawdy letter he was said to have sent Jeffrey Epstein for a 2003 birthday album. Full entry | Ongoing | 2 |
| September 15, 2025 | Focal case United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180) | Donald Trump | President Trump sued The New York Times and four of its journalists for $15 billion over articles and a book published before the 2024 election; a judge dismissed the sprawling original complaint for violating basic pleading rules, and Trump refiled a shorter version a month later. Full entry | Ongoing (October 16, 2025) | 2 |
All ladders · Lawsuits against the press: by country and year · The United States chapter