Fox takes down Hunter Biden ‘trial’ miniseries after lawsuit threat
“This program was produced in and has been available since 2022,” a Fox News Media spokesperson said in a statement. “We are reviewing the concerns that have just been raised and – out of an abundance of caution in the interim – have taken it down.”
By Marshall Cohen | CNN
Fox News on Tuesday removed a six-part Hunter Biden miniseries from its streaming platform, after his attorneys threatened to sue the right-wing network over the incendiary and at-times sexually explicit program about his legal troubles.
The removal is a swift response from the conservative media juggernaut, whose spokespeople were defending the material as recently as Tuesday morning.
“This program was produced in and has been available since 2022,” a Fox News Media spokesperson said in a statement. “We are reviewing the concerns that have just been raised and – out of an abundance of caution in the interim – have taken it down.”
The program, titled “The Trial of Hunter Biden,” was an offering on the Fox Nation digital streaming network. It was also promoted on Fox News, the cable TV channel.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the link on the Fox Nation site for the six-episode series was not working. Episodes that were available before the lawsuit threat are no longer accessible.
The dispute primarily revolves around sexually explicit images of Hunter Biden, President Joe Biden’s son, with women that were shown on-screen during the program, which featured a “mock trial” about his overseas financial dealings that led in part to his federal tax indictment and has also fueled House Republicans’ struggling impeachment inquiry into his father.
Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to the federal charges, and a trial in California is scheduled to begin in late June.
His lawyers accused Fox of defamation and of “unlawful publication of hacked intimate images” that could violate “revenge porn” laws.
Fox denied wrongdoing, saying in a statement Tuesday morning that its coverage was accurate and “consistent with the First Amendment.”