Latest news with #TheTrumpTapes
CNBC
19-07-2025
- Politics
- CNBC
Donald Trump's lawsuit against Bob Woodward over audiobook is dismissed
A federal judge on Friday dismissed U.S. President Donald Trump's nearly $50 million lawsuit against the journalist Bob Woodward for publishing tapes from interviews for his 2020 best-seller "Rage" as an audiobook. The decision by U.S. District Judge Paul Gardephe in Manhattan is a victory for Woodward, his publisher, Simon & Schuster, and its former owner, Paramount Global. Woodward interviewed Trump 19 times between December 2019 and August 2020, and approximately 20% of "Rage" was derived from these interviews. The book was released in September 2020, while the audiobook "The Trump Tapes," including Woodward's commentary, was released in October 2022. In a 59-page decision, Gardephe stated that Trump did not plausibly allege that he and Woodward intended to be joint authors of "The Trump Tapes," noting that Simon & Schuster credited Trump as a "reader" while crediting Woodward as the author. The judge, an appointee of Republican President George W. Bush, also stated that Trump did not demonstrate he had a copyright interest in his stand-alone responses to Woodward's questions. Gardephe also stated that federal copyright law preempted Trump's state-law-based claims. He gave Trump until August 18 to amend his complaint a third time. A spokesperson for Trump's legal team said in a statement: "In another biased action by a New York Court, this wrongful decision was issued without even affording President Trump the basic due process of a hearing. We will continue to ensure that those who commit wrongdoing against President Trump and all Americans are held accountable." Lawyers for Woodward, Simon & Schuster and Paramount did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The defendants had argued that federal law barred Trump from copyrighting interviews conducted as part of his official duties, and that no president before him ever demanded royalties for publishing presidential interviews. They also referred to Woodward as the "sole architect and true author" of the interviews, just as journalists like the late Walter Cronkite and Barbara Walters were in their interviews with other presidents. Woodward also stated that his interviews reflected "classic news reporting," which helped convey accurate information to the public, and thus constituted "fair use." Trump was sued in January 2023, claiming he had told Woodward repeatedly that the interviews were intended solely for the book. Woodward said he never agreed to that restriction. The $49.98 million damages request was based on what Trump's lawyers called projected sales of 2 million audiobooks at $24.99 each. Paramount sold Simon & Schuster in October 2023 to private equity firm KKR KKR.N for $1.62 billion in cash. The case is
Newsweek
19-07-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Donald Trump Suffers Triple Legal Setback Within Hours
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. President Donald Trump and his administration suffered a trio of legal defeats within hours on Friday in cases regarding sanctions against International Criminal Court (ICC) employees, a new 15 percent indirect cost rate for federal research at the Pentagon and journalist Bob Woodward's publication of his 2022 book, The Trump Tapes. Newsweek contacted the White House and the Department of Justice for comment on Saturday via email and online inquiry form, respectively, outside regular office hours. Why It Matters With the Republican Party enjoying a slim majority in both the Senate and House, the courts have emerged as arguably the greatest impediment to the Trump administration's policies. Courts have intervened to block or suspend the administration's policies over a swath of issues, including attempts to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development and to ban transgender personnel from the military, though the Supreme Court temporarily allowed the latter policy to go ahead in May. What To Know On Friday, U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen blocked an executive order issued by Trump on February 6 that imposed a range of sanctions on ICC employees involved in cases against the U.S. or close U.S. allies, such as Israel. Torresen concluded that the move, which saw sanctions imposed on the British ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, appeared to "restrict substantially more speech than necessary." In February, Khan, who has been involved with ICC investigations into Israel, was added to the American list of "Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons," barring him from doing business with Americans and restricting his access to the U.S. Separately, in Massachusetts, U.S. District Judge Brian E. Murphy concluded that the Trump administration didn't have the authority to impose a 15 percent ceiling on indirect costs related to federally funded research at the Pentagon. President Donald Trump answering questions outside the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 11. President Donald Trump answering questions outside the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 11. Win McNamee/GETTY This is the latest of a series of legal defeats the Trump administration has suffered in response to its imposition of 15 percent indirect cost limits for research across multiple government departments. The judge wrote: "The Government has, for the fourth time, purported to announce a policy that has consistently been deemed unlawful, without acknowledgment of its apparent illegality and without any attempt to structure the policy in a manner that fulfills the established requirements of law." In New York, U.S. District Judge Paul Gardephe ruled against Trump's claim that the publication of certain interviews he conducted with Woodward constituted a breach of copyright. Woodward published The Trump Tapes in 2022, consisting of 20 interviews he conducted with the president between 2016 and 2020 in advance of his 2020 book on the first Trump administration, Rage. What People Are Saying U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen wrote in her ruling: "The executive order appears to restrict substantially more speech than necessary to further that end. The executive order broadly prohibits any speech-based services that benefit the prosecutor, regardless of whether those beneficial services relate to an ICC investigation of the United States, Israel, or another U.S. ally." U.S. District Judge Paul Gardephe wrote his ruling: "While it appears unlikely that Plaintiff can adequately plead a plausible copyright interest in The Trump Tapes or any non-preempted state law claim, this Court cannot find at this stage that any amendment would be futile." What Happens Next It remains to be seen how disruptive the legal system will be for Trump's policy agenda going forward. The Supreme Court has six conservative-leaning justices and three liberal-leaning ones, meaning the administration may try to get as many cases as possible referred to the nation's highest court.
New Straits Times
19-07-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
Donald Trump's lawsuit against Bob Woodward over audiobook is dismissed
NEW YORK: Donald Trump cannot pursue his nearly US$50 million lawsuit against the journalist Bob Woodward for publishing tapes from interviews for his 2020 best-seller "Rage" as an audiobook, a federal judge ruled on Friday. The decision by US District Judge Paul Gardephe in Manhattan is a victory for Woodward, his publisher Simon & Schuster and its former owner Paramount Global. They had argued that federal law barred the US president from copyrighting interviews conducted as part of his official duties, and that no president before him ever demanded royalties for publishing presidential interviews. The defendants also called Woodward the "sole architect and true author" of the interviews, just as journalists like the late Walter Cronkite and Barbara Walters were in interviews with other presidents. Woodward also said his interviews reflected "classic news reporting" that helped convey accurate information to the public, and thus amounted to "fair use." Trump was interviewed by Woodward 19 times between December 2019 and August 2020, and about 20 per cent of "Rage" came from the interviews. The book was released in September 2020, while the audiobook "The Trump Tapes," including Woodward's commentary, was released in October 2022. Trump sued in January 2023, saying he told Woodward repeatedly that the interviews were meant solely for the book. Woodward said he never agreed to that restriction. The US$49.98 million damages request was based on what Trump's lawyers called projected sales of 2 million audiobooks at US$24.99 each. Paramount sold Simon & Schuster in October 2023 to private equity firm KKR for US$1.62 billion in cash. The case is Trump v Simon & Schuster Inc et al, US District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 23-06883.
NBC News
19-07-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
Judge dismisses Trump's lawsuit against Bob Woodward over audiobook
A federal judge on Friday dismissed President Donald Trump's nearly $50 million lawsuit against the journalist Bob Woodward for publishing tapes from interviews for his 2020 best-seller 'Rage' as an audiobook. The decision by U.S. District Judge Paul Gardephe in Manhattan is a victory for Woodward, his publisher Simon & Schuster and its former owner Paramount Global. Woodward interviewed Trump 19 times between December 2019 and August 2020, and about 20% of 'Rage' came from the interviews. The book was released in September 2020, while the audiobook 'The Trump Tapes,' including Woodward's commentary, was released in October 2022. In a 59-page decision, Gardephe said Trump did not plausibly allege that he and Woodward intended to be joint authors of 'The Trump Tapes,' saying Simon & Schuster credited Trump as a 'reader' while crediting Woodward as the author. The judge, an appointee of Republican President George W. Bush, also said Trump did not show he had a copyright interest in his stand-alone responses to Woodward's questions. Gardephe also said federal copyright law preempted Trump's state law-based claims. He gave Trump until Aug. 18 to amend his complaint a third time. A spokesperson for Trump's legal team said in a statement: 'In another biased action by a New York Court, this wrongful decision was issued without even affording President Trump the basic due process of a hearing. We will continue to ensure that those who commit wrongdoing against President Trump and all Americans are held accountable.' Lawyers for Woodward, Simon & Schuster and Paramount did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Walter Cronkite, Barbara Walters cited The defendants had argued that federal law barred Trump from copyrighting interviews conducted as part of his official duties, and that no president before him ever demanded royalties for publishing presidential interviews. They also called Woodward the 'sole architect and true author' of the interviews, just as journalists like the late Walter Cronkite and Barbara Walters were in interviews with other presidents. Woodward also said his interviews reflected 'classic news reporting' that helped convey accurate information to the public, and thus amounted to 'fair use.' Trump sued in January 2023, saying he told Woodward repeatedly that the interviews were meant solely for the book. Woodward said he never agreed to that restriction. The $49.98 million damages request was based on what Trump's lawyers called projected sales of 2 million audiobooks at $24.99 each. Paramount sold Simon & Schuster in October 2023 to private equity firm KKR for $1.62 billion in cash.
