The far-right website Newsmax is known for its staunch support of former President Donald Trump but faced a revolt by its hyper-conservative base after sharing a link on X, formerly Twitter, to an article discussing Trump's "degrading rhetoric" about immigrants.
The article, sourced from Reuters, detailed Trump's comments during a speech in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he referred to immigrants in the United States illegally as "animals" and "not human." Although the article was clearly attributed to Reuters, with a small copyright line at the bottom, it was presented on Newsmax's platform as if it were an original piece.
You can see it below.
Newsmax
Initially, the article on Newsmax's website included fact-checking information disputing Trump's claims about illegal immigrants, citing research that contradicted his assertions. It highlighted Trump's repeated claims, unsupported by evidence, about migrants causing an increase in violent crime in the United States.
And their readers were not happy about it.
Following the criticism and attacks from its base, Newsmax deleted the initial tweet and modified the article, toning down the language in the first sentence and removing some of the fact-checking language.
The revised version still quoted Trump's controversial remarks but omitted some of the critical analysis present in the original and now reads:
"Donald Trump called immigrants in the United States illegally āanimalsā and ānot humansā in a speech in Michigan on Tuesday.ā
The backlash prompted Newsmax anchor Rob Schmitt to defend the network in a post of his own, writing:
"Just so thereās no confusion. Trump calling illegal killers 'animals' is dead on accurate. And if youāve watched any of my shows, or any Newsmax primetime shows the last week - youād already know our position."
You can see his post below.
But it quickly became evident he hadn't won anyone over.
Despite its purported allegiance, Newsmax's relationship with Trump continues to be tested.
A judge has set a significant defamation lawsuit against the network to commence trial in late September, positioning the dispute over false narratives surrounding the 2020 election at the forefront of the 2024 campaign season.
While there remains the possibility of an out-of-court settlement between Newsmax and the voting technology company Smartmatic, the trial is scheduled to commence on September 24, pending any further delays. Should the trial proceed as planned, it will illuminate the aftermath of Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election, coinciding with his bid to reclaim the presidency.
This trial would mark the inaugural proceeding among over a dozen high-profile defamation cases that will face a jury, all originating from baseless assertions alleging that Smartmatic and Dominion Voting Systems manipulated the 2020 election results by shifting millions of votes from Trump to Joe Biden.
These unfounded claims, championed by Trump and his supporters in Congress and the conservative media, contributed to the violent insurrection on January 6, 2021.
