New York real estate developer and TV personality Donald Trump filed a defamation lawsuit against New York Times business reporter Timothy O’Brien, who recently wrote a book about Trump, and O’Brien’s publisher, Warner Business Books.
Trump, who issued a news release this morning announcing the lawsuit, stated that O’Brien has defamed Trump, specifically when it comes to his net worth. Trump said he provided financial documents to O’Brien that showed that he was worth billions, but that O’Brien wrote that he was worth between $150 million and $250 million.
In his release, Trump stated, “The writer and publisher of this book knew full well that their statements were false and malicious, but in hopes of generating book sales, they did not care. In so doing, they exposed themselves to this lawsuit. It is about time that somebody stepped forward to expose certain members of the press for what they are. Whether it is a Jayson Blair or a Tim O’Brien, the public should be informed so that they can take a more skeptical view of the things they read in certain media.”
Just 10 days ago, O’Brien was on the NPR show On the Media, where he criticized Forbes magazine’s analysis of Trump’s net worth.
The Associated Press coverage of the lawsuit can be found here.
