Donald Trump’s lawsuit against Bob Woodward over audiobook is dismissed
NEW YORK — A federal judge on Friday dismissed US President Donald J. 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 US District Judge Paul Gardephe in Manhattan is a victory for Mr. Woodward, his publisher Simon & Schuster and its former owner Paramount Global.
Mr. Woodward interviewed Mr. 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 Mr. Woodward’s commentary, was released in October 2022.
In a 59-page decision, Mr. Gardephe said Mr. Trump did not plausibly allege that he and Mr. Woodward intended to be joint authors of The Trump Tapes, saying Simon & Schuster credited Mr. Trump as a “reader” while crediting Mr. Woodward as the author.
The judge, an appointee of Republican President George W. Bush, also said Mr. Trump did not show he had a copyright interest in his stand-alone responses to Mr. Woodward’s questions.
Mr. Gardephe also said federal copyright law preempted Mr. Trump’s state law-based claims. He gave Mr. Trump until Aug. 18 to amend his complaint a third time.
A spokesperson for Mr. 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 Mr. 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 Mr. 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 Mr. 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.
Mr. Woodward also said his interviews reflected “classic news reporting” that helped convey accurate information to the public, and thus amounted to “fair use.”
Mr. Trump sued in January 2023, saying he told Mr. Woodward repeatedly that the interviews were meant solely for the book. Mr. Woodward said he never agreed to that restriction.
The $49.98-million damages request was based on what Mr. 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. — Reuters
