Law360 (April 15, 2024, 4:43 PM EDT) -- A D.C. federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton from investigating Media Matters over its reporting on the X social media platform, ruling that the probe deterred the progressive media watchdog's "core First Amendment activities."
Friday's order from U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta stops the Republican attorney general from demanding a host of records from Media Matters for America after the organization published an article in November saying that advertisements were appearing next to extremist content on X, formerly Twitter.
Media Matters, which describes itself as a progressive research center focused on combating conservative misinformation, said the investigation prompted it to pare back its reporting on X for fear of further retaliation. Judge Mehta agreed that Paxton's investigation had a "profound chilling impact" on the organization, which sued to stop the probe.
"The investigation and the [civil investigative demand] have caused plaintiffs to self-censor when making research and publication decisions, adversely affected the relationships between editors and reporters, and restricted communications with sources and journalists," he said. "Plaintiffs have amply 'demonstrate[d] some likelihood of a chilling effect on their rights' to justify preliminary injunctive relief."
Describing Media Matters as a "radical anti-free speech organization," Paxton announced the probe in November, the same day X Corp. and its owner Elon Musk sued Media Matters in Texas federal court. The moves came after Media Matters reporter Eric Hananoki, another plaintiff in the D.C. suit, published a report that said X was placing big-name brands' ads alongside neo-Nazi and white nationalist content.
Musk's suit, which Media Matters has moved to dismiss, said that the outlet manipulated the X algorithm to manufacture the story as part of a "blatant smear campaign" to drive away advertisers. Paxton's investigation sought to probe the same claims.
Media Matters president and CEO Angelo Carusone called the ruling a "victory for free speech" in a Friday statement.
"Elon Musk encouraged Republican state attorneys general to use their power to harass their critics and stifle reporting about X," he said. "Ken Paxton was one of those AGs that took up the call and he was defeated."
In granting the preliminary injunction, Judge Mehta also slapped down Paxton's jurisdictional challenges to the suit. The judge said that Paxton had sufficient contact with Washington, D.C., to pull him into the court's jurisdiction because the Texas attorney general hired a process server to serve the investigative demand on Media Matters there.
In doing so, Paxton should have "anticipated being haled into court here" because the demand would have required him and his staff to continue their dealings in D.C., such as by negotiating with Media Matters' attorneys or inspecting the organization's records, Judge Mehta said.
"By targeting a D.C.-based entity for investigation and demanding records from it, defendant committed himself to a potentially long course of dealing in the district," the judge said. "In such circumstances, defendant should have reasonably foreseen that he would be called into court here."
The Texas Attorney General's Office did not return a request for comment Monday.
Media Matters is represented by Abha Khanna, Aria C. Branch, Jacob D. Shelly, Elena A. Rodriguez Armenta, Elisabeth C. Frost, Daniela Lorenzo, Samuel T. Ward-Packard and Omeed Alerasool of Elias Law Group LLP, and Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., Jay P. Srinivasan, Amer S. Ahmed and Anne Champion of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP.
Paxton is represented by Christopher Lavorato and Reuben W. Blum of the Texas Office of the Attorney General, and Gene C. Schaerr and Kenneth A. Klukowski of Schaerr Jaffe LLP.
The case is Media Matters for America et al. v. Paxton, case number 1:24-cv-00147, in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
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