Seth Rich's brother sues right-wing activists, Washington Times over conspiracy theories

[DonViejo]

Source: CNN




by Oliver Darcy @oliverdarcy

March 27, 2018: 12:56 PM ET


The brother of Seth Rich, the slain Democratic National Committee staffer whose unsolved murder became the basis for conspiracy theories on the far-right, filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against individuals and media organizations that he alleges peddled false and unfounded claims about him.

The lawsuit, filed by Aaron Rich in US District Court in the District of Columbia, accuses Ed Butowsky, a wealthy Texas businessman; Matt Couch, a fringe internet activist; America First Media, Couch's media company; and The Washington Times, a conservative newspaper, of acting "with reckless disregard for the truth."

Seth Rich was fatally shot in Washington, DC, in July 2016. Police have said evidence indicates he was the victim of a botched robbery, but in the wake of his death, far-right activists and media organizations suggested something far more sinister. Without real evidence, they peddled a conspiracy theory that said Seth Rich leaked a trove of DNC emails to Wikileaks and was killed in retribution for the supposed leak. The theory was convenient for some on the right as they disputed allegations Russia hacked the DNC, something President Trump had raised doubts about. Aaron Rich's lawsuit seeks damages for harm to his reputation and emotional distress, among other things, against Butowsky, Couch, America First Media, and The Washington Times for suggesting he played a role in the supposed email theft.

The suit alleges those people and media companies pushed a conspiracy theory about Aaron Rich that used his background as a defense contractor with technical expertise to suggest he worked with his brother to leak DNC documents to Wikileaks, received money for doing so, and then worked to cover-up the crime.


Read more: http://money.cnn.com/2018/03/27/media/seth-rich-brother-sues-washington-times/index.html

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Exclusive: The chaos behind the scenes of Fox News' now-retracted Seth Rich story

[Dawson Leery]

1. The Right Wing Entertainment Complex has systematically slandered

the left.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

2. Lawsuit: Fox News Concocted Seth Rich Story with Oversight from the tRump White House

http://money.cnn.com/2017/08/01/media/rod-wheeler-seth-rich-fox-news-lawsuit/index.html

...
According to the lawsuit, then-White House press secretary Sean Spicer met with Butowsky and Wheeler, was provided Wheeler's investigative notes, and "asked to be kept abreast of developments" with the case.

"Ed is [a] longtime supporter of the president's agenda who often appears in the media," Spicer said in an email to CNN. "He asked for a 10 minute meeting, with no specified topic, to catch up and said he would be bringing along a contributor to Fox News. As Ed himself has noted, he has never met the President and the White House had nothing to do with his story."

Asked by CNN for confirmation that Rich had been discussed during that meeting, Spicer responded, "They told me they were working on a story about him and wanted me to be aware of it -- that was it."

Previously, Spicer appeared to deny he had knowledge of the Rich story. During a May 16 gaggle with reporters, he was asked for reaction to Fox News' story on the matter. "I don't -- I'm not aware of -- generally, I don't get updates on DNC -- former DNC staffers," Spicer said. "I'm not aware of that." Spicer did not respond to an email from CNN about the apparent discrepancy between what he said in May and his statement Tuesday.

At a press briefing Tuesday, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters, "The president had no knowledge of the story and it's completely untrue that he and the White House were involved."
...

[riversedge]

6. I wish Hannity would be personally hit in his wallet for his vile mouth!

[Hortensis]

3. Good! I hope both lawsuits hurt these bastards,

not just monetarily but in the minds of the many who didn't know what to think and became open funnels for this poison.

[riversedge]

7. And poison it is. Generally, it is the daily cummulative effects that kill the body-and mind.

[SunSeeker]

4. These lawsuits need to happen more often. nt

[Fritz Walter]

5. Please call me for that jury duty!

I promise to be fair and objective, and base my verdict on the evidence presented at trial.

I’m even willing to forego jury duty pay, since this would be fulfilling my civic duty!

Please!

[Scurrilous]

8. Good!