Trump files $15 billion defamation lawsuit against New York Times

US President Donald Trump on Monday filed a $15 billion (€13.8bn) defamation lawsuit against the New York Times and four of its journalists, months after bringing legal action against the Wall Street Journal.

Trump said the outlet was a "virtual mouthpiece" for "the radical left Democrat(ic) Party" and accused it of "spreading false and defamatory content" about him, his family and business.

The lawsuit filed in the Republican-led state of Florida names several articles and a book written by two New York Times journalists published in the lead-up to the 2024 election.

The content is "part of a decades-long pattern by the New York Times of intentional and malicious defamation against President Trump," the lawsuit says.

“Defendants published such statements negligently, with knowledge of the falsity of the statements, and/or with reckless disregard of their truth or falsity."

The New York Times did not immediately respond.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump singled out the publication's backing of his Democratic opponent in the last presidential election, writing that the Times' "endorsement of Kamala Harris was actually put dead centre on the front page of the New York Times, something heretofore unheard of."

It comes days after the US daily newspaper published an article saying it had been threatened by legal action by the White House over its reporting on a crude note Trump allegedly gifted to disgraced financier and convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Trump has denied that the note, which included a lewd drawing and his signature as part of a book to celebrate Epstein's 50th birthday, was authored by him.

The US president has brought several lawsuits against high-profile media outlets in the past.

In July, Trump launched legal action against the Wall Street Journal and media mogul Rupert Murdoch after the paper broke the story of the Epstein note's existence.

He also brought legal cases against television network ABC News, its anchor George Stephanopoulos and US media conglomerate Paramount for a pre-election interview with Kamala Harris.

The cases were settled for $15 million (€13.8m) and $16 million (€14.7m) respectively.