Washington, D.C. – At 1:40 AM +07 on Sunday, May 18, 2025, posts on X are amplifying a growing unease about the Trump administration’s staffing choices, with over 30 former Fox News employees now holding key roles. The sentiment, captured in a widely shared post—“Imagine having a government that now has over 30 people employed in the administration who used to work for a TV station that had to pay $787 million for lying to its viewers”—underscores fears about the influence of a network with a controversial history on the highest levels of government.
Fox News, the conservative media giant, settled a defamation lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems for $787 million in April 2023, a record for an American media company. The lawsuit stemmed from Fox’s coverage of false claims that Dominion’s voting machines rigged the 2020 election against Donald Trump. Court documents revealed that Fox hosts and executives, including Rupert Murdoch, privately dismissed the claims as baseless but continued to air them to retain viewers, a decision Dominion argued caused significant harm. The settlement, while avoiding a trial, was seen as an admission of wrongdoing, with Dominion’s lawyer Justin Nelson stating, “Lies have consequences,” at a press conference on April 18, 2023.
The hiring of over 30 former Fox News staffers into the Trump administration has sparked alarm among critics. Figures like White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, a former Fox contributor, and others in communications and advisory roles, bring with them the network’s baggage. Posts on X reflect a fear that this influx embeds a “culture of lies” into government, with one user calling it “a spin room with nukes.” The concern is heightened by Trump’s own history of promoting election fraud narratives, which the Fox settlement indirectly validated as false.
The administration’s defenders argue that these hires bring media savvy and loyalty to Trump’s agenda, crucial for navigating a polarized landscape. Trump’s recent economic wins, like the $1.2 trillion Qatar deal announced on May 14, are touted as evidence of effective governance, and former Fox employees may help sell these victories to the public. However, the ethical implications are hard to ignore. Fox’s willingness to prioritize ratings over truth, as revealed in the Dominion case, raises questions about the integrity these individuals bring to public service. Internal Fox texts from 2020 showed hosts like Tucker Carlson privately scorning Trump’s claims while amplifying them on air, a duplicity that could translate into policy decisions.
This staffing trend also comes amid broader concerns about Trump’s governance style. His mass firing of inspectors general on January 24, 2025, and the controversial federal employee buyout program, which a judge allowed to proceed on February 13, signal a push to reshape the federal workforce. Critics fear that former Fox staffers, accustomed to a network that valued narrative over fact, might prioritize political messaging over transparent governance, especially as the U.S. grapples with a historic credit rating downgrade by Moody’s on May 16, reflecting fiscal instability.
The irony isn’t lost on observers: a government now partly staffed by a network that paid nearly $800 million for spreading falsehoods is tasked with rebuilding public trust. Whether these hires will amplify Trump’s agenda or deepen skepticism remains to be seen, but the optics are troubling in an already divided nation.
