Bob Woodward is one of the most influential investigative journalists in American history. He gained international fame in the 1970s as one half of the Washington Post team alongside Carl Bernstein that exposed the Watergate scandal, eventually leading to President Richard Nixon’s resignation. Over the decades, Woodward has authored or co-authored nearly 20 best-selling books on US presidents, from Nixon to Biden, earning a reputation for deep reporting and insider access.
Woodward has interviewed nearly every modern president and is especially known for his taped interviews, used to craft detailed political narratives. One of his books, Rage (2020), featured interviews with President Donald Trump conducted between 2019 and 2020.
Trump vs Woodward
In January 2023, Donald Trump filed a lawsuit against Woodward and publisher Simon & Schuster, claiming they had infringed on his copyright by releasing ‘The Trump Tapes’, an audiobook composed of those recorded interviews. Trump argued that his spoken answers to Woodward’s questions constituted co-authored content and were improperly used beyond what he claimed had been agreed upon.
According to Trump’s legal team, the interviews were granted with the understanding they’d be used solely for Woodward’s book. Instead, the release of ‘The Trump Tapes’ turned the raw audio into a commercial product, which Trump said violated both copyright law and their supposed agreement.
Judge dismisses the case
On Friday, US District Judge Paul Gardephe in Manhattan dismissed Trump’s case, ruling that the former president failed to show he had any copyright ownership over the interview recordings. Gardephe emphasised that while interviews can be a “collaborative exercise,” that does not automatically mean the interviewee shares in copyright ownership.
“There is almost no support in the case law for the notion that an interviewee has a copyright interest in his responses to interview questions,” the judge wrote, calling Trump’s position inconsistent with the intent of the US Copyright Act.
Importantly, Gardephe did leave the door open for Trump to file a revised lawsuit, though he noted it was “unlikely” Trump would succeed.
This is one of several legal disputes involving Trump that date back before his reelection campaign. While this case was dismissed, Trump has settled other high-profile lawsuits in recent months, including with Meta Platforms, Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter), and ABC.
He also has ongoing legal battles, including a defamation case related to remarks he made about the “Central Park Five,” and another case against the Des Moines Register alleging election interference.
Meanwhile, Simon & Schuster, now owned by KKR & Co., welcomed the court’s decision. “We are very pleased the court agreed with us and dismissed the case,” a company spokesperson said as quoted by Bloomberg. Woodward’s legal team did not immediately issue a comment.
Trump had filed a copyright registration for the audiobook in question, listing himself as co-author, but the court noted that such filings are procedural and not necessarily evidence of valid copyright claims.