When a news network lies about a governor on national television, there have to be consequences.

That's what California Governor Gavin Newsom is demanding in his $787 million defamation lawsuit against Fox News. During the Los Angeles unrest this past June, Fox ran segments branding Newsom a liar over a disputed phone call with President Trump — and a federal judge has now ruled the case can move forward, finding it "reasonably conceivable" Fox knew the claims were false before airing them.

This isn't the first time. In 2023, Fox paid Dominion Voting Systems $787 million after internal messages proved its hosts privately knew their election fraud coverage was false. The pattern is undeniable.

A free press matters. But freedom of the press was never a license to lie. When the country's most-watched cable news network deliberately smears a public official, it doesn't just hurt him — it misleads every American watching.

A judge says this case deserves to be heard. Sign to say you agree: no media outlet is above the truth.