Paris is moving forward with its plans to sue Fox News for reporting in January that there are so-called Muslim “no-go zones” in the French capital.
Mayor Anne Hidalgo received authorization late Wednesday from the Paris City Council to pursue the defamation lawsuit.
Officials voted to file the lawsuit in a French court, alleging defamation over a Fox News report that claimed in January that Paris is home to at least eight “no-go zones” where Shari law reigns supreme and law enforcement officials have no power. At the time, Fox News also broadcast an image of a map of Paris with eight of these apparently nonexistent areas highlighted in red.
“The decision by the City of Paris to bring legal proceedings against a United States news organization is antithetical to free speech,” Dori Ann Hanswirth, the outside counsel representing Fox News in its fight with Paris, told the Washington Examiner’s media desk.
“Fox News will invoke every protection afforded it under all applicable laws,” the statement added.
The now debunked “no-go zone” reports followed January’s terrorist attack on the offices of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which left 10 journalists and two police officers dead.
It is widely believed that the attack, which was carried out by Islamic terrorists, was in response to the magazine’s repeated mockery of Islam and Muhammad.
As French police continued their search for suspects in the Charlie Hebdo slaughter, national security analyst Steve Emerson said in a Fox News interview that the “no-go zones” are “sort of amorphous, they’re not contiguous necessarily, but they’re sort of safe havens. And they’re places where the governments, like France, Britain, Sweden, Germany — they don’t exercise any sovereignty, so you basically have zones where Sharia courts are set up, where Muslim density is very intense, where police don’t go in.
“There are actual cities like Birmingham that are totally Muslim, where non-Muslims just simply don’t go in,” he said.
British Prime Minister David Cameron was quick to dispute this claim.
“When I heard this, frankly, I choked on my porridge, and I thought it must be April Fools Day,” Cameron said.
Fox News later backed away from the “no-go zone” reports, as more than one network personality apologized on-air for Emerson’s comments, as well as similar remarks by others who appeared on the network.
“This applies especially to discussions of so-called ‘no-go zones,’ areas where non-Muslims allegedly aren’t allowed in, and police supposedly won’t go,” Fox News’ Julie Banderas said. “To be clear, there is no formal designation of these zones in either country, and no credible information to support the assertion there are specific areas in these countries that exclude individuals based solely on their religion.”
A Fox News spokesperson later added “it is unlikely” Emerson would be invited again to appear on the network.
Mayor Anne Hidalgo first announced the city’s plans to sue Fox News during an interview with CNN, saying: “The image of Paris has been prejudiced, and the honor of Paris has been prejudiced. And I think in the great discussion of truth, everyone is to play its role. And we’re going to have to be realistic and put things as they are.”
“When we’re insulted, and when we’ve had an image, then I think we’ll have to sue, I think we’ll have to go to court, in order to have these words removed,” she said.
And as to whether the lawsuit against Fox News will be successful, director of the Center for International Media Law and Policy Studies Anthony L. Fargo is doubtful.
“First, it’s unclear whether French courts have any jurisdiction over Fox News, an American news network. Second, it’s unlikely the case would be successful in the United States because governmental bodies — like cities — can’t sue for defamation,” Fargo told Poynter when the lawsuit was first reported.
He added: “So it sounds like a symbolic gesture to me, if I had to guess.”
