New York
CNN
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Former President Donald Trump has sued journalist Bob Woodward for copyright violations, claiming Woodward launched audio from their interviews with out Trump’s consent.
The previous president has a protracted historical past of submitting lawsuits that finally get tossed out of court docket. Woodward and the writer Simon & Schuster mentioned Trump’s case is with out benefit.
Woodward carried out a number of interviews with Trump for “Rage,” the creator’s second e-book on the previous president that hit bookstores in September 2020. Woodward later launched “The Trump Tapes,” an audiobook that includes eight hours of uncooked interviews with Trump interspersed with the creator’s commentary. That e-book, which went on sale October 25, 2022, incorporates the 20 interviews Woodward carried out with Trump from 2016 by way of 2020, together with these for “Rage.”
However Trump, within the lawsuit filed Monday within the Northern District of Florida, claims he didn’t give Woodward permission to launch the audio of the interviews.
“President Trump advised Woodward quite a few occasions that the Interviews have been for use by Woodward – and Woodward solely – for the only real objective of precisely quoting President Trump for the ‘written phrase,’ i.e., ‘Rage,’ and never for some other objective, together with offering, advertising and marketing, or promoting the Interviews to the general public, press, or the media, in any means, form, or type,” the lawsuit states.
Trump, who additionally sued Simon & Schuster and dad or mum firm Paramount, is looking for practically $50 million in damages. The lawsuit claims the audio was “protected materials, topic to numerous limitations on use and distribution.”
Earlier this month, a federal decide dominated that Trump and his attorneys have been chargeable for practically $1 million in sanctions for a lawsuit Trump introduced in opposition to Hillary Clinton and several other others alleging they conspired in opposition to him within the 2016 marketing campaign.
In that case, US District Decide Donald Middlebrooks of the Southern District of Florida wrote that Trump has demonstrated a “sample of misusing the courts to serve political functions” as he ticked by way of a number of different failed lawsuits Trump has introduced lately.
“Frivolous lawsuits shouldn’t be used as a car for fundraising or fodder for rallies or social media,” Middlebrooks wrote. “Mr. Trump is utilizing the courts as a stage set for political theater and grievance. This conduct interferes with the power of the judiciary to carry out its constitutional obligation.”
Trump has equally sued a number of media firms, together with CNN, for stories that he has seen as unfavorable or disparaging.
In his lawsuit in opposition to Woodward, Trump claims that the creator “determined to take advantage of, usurp, and capitalize upon President Trump’s voice by releasing the interview sound recordings of their interviews,” as a result of “President Trump’s voice is likely one of the most recognizable voices on the earth.”
“Former President Trump’s lawsuit is with out benefit and we are going to aggressively defend in opposition to it,” Woodward and Simon & Schuster mentioned in a joint assertion on Tuesday. “All these interviews have been on the report and recorded with President Trump’s data and settlement.”
Woodward and the writer mentioned the audiobook is within the public’s curiosity as a result of it serves as a historic report of Trump’s personal phrases.
“We’re assured that the information and the legislation are in our favor,” they mentioned.
This story has been up to date with further response.