President-elect Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against an Iowa pollster and newspaper, accusing them of skewing a poll to favor Vice President Kamala Harris in the November election. The legal expert and press freedom advocates doubt the lawsuit’s success. Trump has previously sued other media outlets, including ABC News. ABC News settled a lawsuit for $15 million over an inaccurate statement made by anchor George Stephanopoulos.
Trump’s supporters see the Iowa lawsuit as an attempt to influence the election outcome, but no evidence of collusion has been presented. The lawsuit names pollster J. Ann Selzer and the Des Moines Register as defendants, alleging violations of the state’s Consumer Fraud Act. Gannett, owner of USA Today, is also named. Selzer’s polls have been historically accurate, but her last poll before the 2020 election showed Harris leading Trump by 3 percentage points. Trump won Iowa by over 13 points.
Selzer’s poll results received significant media coverage. She has attributed the wide margin of error to possibly motivating Republican voters to turn out. However, there is no concrete proof of this. Selzer has been a respected pollster for years, with some polls aligning closely with election results and others being off the mark. Experts believe the lawsuit will face challenges due to First Amendment protections and the lack of evidence of intentional manipulation.
The lawsuit raises concerns about potential chilling effects on news gathering. Critics argue that this lawsuit, along with previous legal actions against the media, could intimidate journalists from conducting fair and accurate reporting. Despite the controversy surrounding the lawsuit, Selzer and her polling company have not yet responded to the legal action.
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