David Smith Threatens Defamation Suit Over Epstein Claim, Citing $156,240 Sinclair Investment
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jul 16
David Smith Threatens Defamation Suit Over Epstein Claim, Citing $156,240 Sinclair Investment
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 16
Summary
A June demand letter warned Maryland Gov. Wes Moore to retract remarks linking Baltimore Sun owner David Smith to Jeffrey Epstein or face a defamation suit; no case had been filed by Wednesday.
Moore's lawyer rejected the threat, saying the governor's statement was true because Epstein-founded entities held Sinclair Broadcast Group investments while Smith was chairman, including stakes valued at $156,240 to $373,980 in 2001-02.
Joseph Sandler argued Moore said Smith "was invested in by Jeffrey Epstein," not that Epstein invested in Smith personally, and said the Semafor account showed no claim of a personal relationship.
The clash grew out of Moore's public attacks on The Baltimore Sun and Sinclair-linked reporting scrutinizing his military record, including questions about a Bronze Star listed on a 2006 application before he received it in 2024.
Smith bought The Baltimore Sun in 2024, and Moore's team says the threatened claim is a bad-faith effort to chill speech on a public controversy over the paper's coverage and ownership role.