Hunter Biden Sues Fox News Over ‘Mock Trial’ Miniseries

Hunter Biden has sued Fox News and its parent company, alleging the right-wing network of slandering him and illegally distributing his intimate photographs without his permission in a 2022 miniseries on his legal issues.

In the case, filed on Sunday in New York state court, the president’s son claims Fox News of unfair enrichment, intentional infliction of mental distress, and violation of New York civil rights statutes. The lawsuit follows Hunter Biden’s April warning to sue the network if it did not quickly release retractions and updates.

Hunter Biden | BBC Image

Hunter Biden Sues Fox News Over ‘Mock Trial’ Miniseries

The six-part drama, “The Trial of Hunter Biden,” aired on the Fox Nation digital streaming network and was promoted on Fox News, the cable TV channel. It included a dramatized “mock trial” of Hunter Biden’s international financial affairs, which contributed to his federal tax conviction and spurred House Republicans’ failing impeachment investigation into his father.

Fox News removed the miniseries in late April, one day after Hunter Biden threatened to initiate a lawsuit. However, according to the lawsuit, advertising materials for the miniseries can still be seen on various Fox News-linked social media pages, and episodes of the miniseries are still available “online and in public domain.”

A Fox News representative stated the complaint was meritless and “entirely politically motivated,” adding that the network looks forward to “vindicating our rights in court.”

“The core complaint stems from a 2022 streaming program that Mr. Biden did not complain about until sending a letter in late April 2024,” the spokeswoman stated. “The program was removed within days of the letter, out of prudence, because Hunter Biden is a public figure who has been investigated several times and is now a convicted felon. In accordance with the First Amendment, Fox News has faithfully reported on newsworthy events created by Mr. Biden.”

The current lawsuit argues that Fox News “targeted Mr. (Hunter) Biden in an effort to harass, annoy, alarm, and humiliate him, as well as tarnish his reputation.” President Joe Biden’s son is demanding unspecified punitive damages and any profits Fox made from the miniseries and other corrective steps.

“The miniseries is a work of fiction rather than a true news event. It was created for trade and advertising purposes, and it simply exploits Mr. Biden’s name, image, and likeness for Fox’s commercial gain,” Hunter Biden’s lawyers stated in the case.

Hunter Biden | Reuters Image

Hunter Biden Sues Fox News Over ‘Mock Trial’ Miniseries

Hunter Biden’s team claimed in the lawsuit that Fox News “unlawfully published numerous intimate images (both still and video) of Mr. Biden depicting him in the nude, depicting an unclothed or exposed intimate part of him, as well as engaging in sex acts” without his permission. The right-wing network said that these photographs came from Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop, material from which was leaked by former President Donald Trump’s friends in 2020.

The president’s son was convicted of federal firearms charges last month and will face a second trial this fall for suspected tax offenses. However, he has not been charged with the bribery and foreign lobbying claims that dominated Fox’s “mock trial” series.

SOURCE | CNN