Federal judge dismisses Trump Media's $3.8 billion defamation suit against The Washington Post

U.S. District Judge Thomas Barber, a Trump appointee, granted summary judgment to The Washington Post, ruling that Trump Media and Technology Group failed to present evidence of actual malice in its $3.8 billion defamation lawsuit. The suit, filed in 2023, stemmed from a Post article about financing for Trump's Truth Social platform. This marks at least the third major dismissal of a Trump defamation suit against media outlets, following similar defeats in cases against the Wall Street Journal and BBC. The Post issued a May 2026 correction confirming no $240,000 loan referral fee was paid, but the judge ruled the absence of actual malice was fatal to the claim — the correction alone did not substantiate the lawsuit. The dismissal by a Trump-appointed judge reinforces the pattern of courts rejecting these suits as legal harassment rather than legitimate defamation claims.