WASHINGTON — Conservative mobster Dinesh D’Souza’s movie and book, “2000 Mules,” which promoted bogus conspiracies about voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election, have been removed. From the executive producer and publisher, according to an announcement on Friday.
Salem Media GroupThe ad for ripping off D’Souza’s film and book also apologized to Georgia native Mark Andrews, who was accused of throwing a ballot in 2000 Mules.
In late 2022, Andrews filed a federal defamation lawsuit against the company, D’Souza, and True The Vote, a nonprofit advocacy group that contributed to the “2000 Mules” project.
D’Souza and True The Vote did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for comment on Salem Media’s decision to pull “2000 Mules.”
Salem Media released the film in 2022.
The company claimed The time when “2000 Mules”. “the most successful political documentary of the last decade” and grossed $10 million in its first weeks of release.
The film quickly became part of a media bill drawn up by far-right figures aimed at discrediting the results of the 2020 presidential election. Joe Biden won.
Former president Donald TrumpLosing to Biden, he embraced “2000 Mules” screening of the film Mar-a-Lago at the Florida Club.
Since then claims made in the film and bookPublished by Regnery Publishing, a subsidiary of Salem Media, it has been systematically debunked by journalists and law enforcement officials.
Late last year, Accepted advocates for True the Vote In a Georgia court, they stated that they could not provide any documents to confirm the allegations regarding the casting of ballots in the 2020 presidential election, which Biden won.
“2000 Mules” shows Andrews putting five ballots in a box, as D’Souza says of the vote: “What you see is a crime. These are fake votes.”
Andrews’ claim continues in court.
The the lawsuit seeks unspecified damagesroyalties for the use of his name and likeness, and a court order requiring D’Souza, Salem Media, True the Vote and others to remove their statements about Andrews.
“It was never our intention that the publication of the 2000 Mules film and book would harm Mr. Andrews,” Salem Media, which announced Friday that it would stop distribution of the film and book, said in a statement.