Fox News Sued By Ray Epps Over Claim He Was At Center Of January 6th Conspiracy

https://deadline.com/2023/07/fox-news-defamation-ray-epps-january-6th-1235435648/

Epps voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020, was an avid Fox News viewer and, believing that the latter election was stolen from him, was among those who trekked to Washington, D.C. in January, 2021 to participate in protests, according to the lawsuit.

Although Epps was outside the Capitol on January 6, he “did not believe violence was appropriate,” acted to deescalate the situation, and ultimately left the grounds for his hotel, according to his lawsuit. But as recently as earlier this year, according to the lawsuit, Carlson cited Epps as a central figure in the conspiracy theory that the attack on the Capitol was orchestrated by the government, and floated the notion that Epps was being protected by federal law enforcement.

Epps accused the network of making him a “scapegoat” for what happened in the Capitol attack. with a “years-long” campaign of spreading falsehoods about him.

“Having promoted the lie that Joe Biden stole the election, having urged people to come to Washington, DC, and having helped light and then pour gasoline on a fire that resulted in an insurrection that interfered with the peaceful transition of power, Fox needed to mask its culpability. It also needed a narrative that did not alienate its viewers, who had grown distrustful of Fox because of its perceived lack of fealty to Trump,” the lawsuit stated.

Epps claimed that he and his wife, Robyn, have received death threats and bullet casings in their yard, along with threatening voicemails, emails and text messages. The conspiracy theory surrounding him became so well known that “Arrest Ray Epps” T-shirts were sold online and a song was written about him and posted on YouTube. The Epps were forced to sell their house and business because of the ongoing harassment, the lawsuit noted, and have gone to living in a mobile home.