If you thought the reaction to The Daily Mail‘s Lisa Wilkinson article was embarrassing, you’ve got a storm coming.
Last year, The Mail Online and the Daily Mail newspaper asserted that the current FLOTUS worked as an escort in her early 1990s modelling days, despite no evidence and vehement denials from those involved.
Mrs Trump filed two lawsuits against the company for claiming she “provided services beyond simply modelling” and that she and Donald had met three years before they actually did, and their meeting at a New York Fashion Week party in 1998 was all a ruse.
“We accept that these allegations about Mrs Trump are not true and we retract and withdraw them,” said the Daily Mail. “We apologise to Mrs Trump for any distress that our publication caused her. To settle Mrs Trump’s two lawsuits against us, we have agreed to pay her damages and costs.”
Look, the terms of the settlement haven’t been disclosed, but the lawsuit was for compensatory and punitive damages of at least $150 million (AUD $199 million).
One hundred and ninety-nine million dollars.
That’s a lot of dosh.
Mrs Trump’s lawyer argued the amount was so high because the defamatory claims hurt her “unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to make money as First Lady from endorsements.
“These product categories would have included, among other things, apparel, accessories, shoes, jewellery, cosmetics, hair care, skin care and fragrance,” the lawsuit claimed.
The original article was published as a two-page spread alongside an old photo of Melania standing nude, said her lawyer John Kelly.
“Readers of the newspaper that day could not fail to miss the article,” he told the court, as reported by the Associated Press.
“The article included false and defamatory claims about the claimant which questioned the nature of her work as a professional model.
“The suggestion that such allegations even merit investigation is deeply offensive and has caused a great deal of upset and distress to the claimant.”
As a part of the settlement, the Daily Mail was required to post an apology on the home page.
A little bit different to their article having a crack at “snowflakes” over #blousegate…
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