President Donald J. Trump reportedly filed a motion Monday requesting an expedited deposition of media mogul Rupert Murdoch in his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and its parent company, News Corp.
At the heart of the request is a concern about Murdoch’s advanced age and fragile health, which Trump’s legal team argues could render his testimony unavailable by the time of trial.
“Mr. Murdoch is 94 years old and has had significant health challenges in recent years,” the motion states, listing a litany of ailments including “a broken back, seizures, two bouts of pneumonia, atrial fibrillation, and a torn Achilles tendon.”
Trump’s attorneys are requesting a de bene esse deposition — a legal tool used to preserve testimony from witnesses who may not be able to testify later due to age or illness.
The case stems from a Wall Street Journal article published earlier this year that claimed Trump contributed a bawdy letter to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday album, allegedly compiled by Epstein’s longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell in 2003.
The article described the letter — which Trump purportedly signed — as featuring typewritten text surrounded by a crude drawing of a naked woman, with Trump’s signature positioned in a lewd location.
According to the Journal, the letter referenced a “wonderful secret” supposedly shared between Trump and Epstein. Trump has forcefully denied the insinuations and filed a federal lawsuit earlier this month in Miami, naming the Journal, its reporters Khadeeja Safdar and Joe Palazzolo, Dow Jones, News Corp, CEO Robert Thomson, and Murdoch himself as defendants.
Trump’s suit alleges two causes of action: defamation per se and defamation per quod. He is seeking a staggering $10 billion in damages, claiming the Journal’s reporting was “malicious and defamatory.”
In Monday’s filing, Trump’s lawyers stressed the urgency of preserving Murdoch’s testimony while noting the imbalance in access to information. “Murdoch has an advantage over President Trump,” the motion argues, stating that the media executive “has access to all the information and documents related to the below-defined malicious and defamatory article,” while Trump “has very limited information related to the article.”
The legal team also maintains that deposing Murdoch now would not cause him undue burden or prejudice, and that “good cause” exists to move forward with the preservation deposition.
The motion underscores the significance of Murdoch’s involvement as the top figure overseeing the companies responsible for publishing the disputed article.
The lawsuit comes at a time when the media landscape is facing increased scrutiny for bias and accountability — particularly among conservative figures who have long criticized legacy outlets like The Wall Street Journal for perceived hostility toward right-leaning voices.
As Trump pursues legal recourse, he appears determined to challenge what he views as a coordinated media effort to smear his name using decades-old innuendo. Whether the courts agree remains to be seen, but his motion signals a readiness to confront powerful media institutions head-on — and under oath.
[READ MORE: New Poll Shows Voters Still Prefer Trump Over Democrats By Significant Margin]
