TAMPA (October 11, 2004) —The cost of doing the right thing and blowing the whistle on bad journalism at Fox Television is about to go even higher for two investigative reporters who once worked for the Rupert Murdoch-owned station in Tampa.

After winning an appeal of a jury verdict which found Fox pressured the reporters to broadcast what jurors unanimously agreed was a false, distorted, or slanted news report, the multi-billion-dollar corporation has sought court orders seeking nearly $2 million from its former journalists as reimbursement for some of the legal fees and defense costs Fox has spent on the landmark whistleblower case.

Although Florida judge Vivian Maye recently denied a motion to force journalists Jane Akre and Steve Wilson to pay $1.8 million in Fox legal bills, she has decided the two are still on the hook for nearly $200,000 Fox spent at trial and on appeal.

The whistleblowers, who are married, have already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of their life savings to pay their own lawyers and court costs in the battle that began shortly after the two were hired at WTVT in Tampa in 1996. They were fired by Fox a year later and filed their whistleblower suit in 1998.

Since filing the first-of-its-kind lawsuit, Akre has never again found full-time employment as a TV journalist, despite more than 20 years experience as an anchor and reporter in major cities and on CNN where she once anchored Headline News. Wilson works part-time as an investigative reporter for the ABC television affiliate in Detroit.

"If you ever wondered whether it’s true that no good deed goes unpunished, just look at what’s happened here," Akre said.

"A jury of disinterested people decided this news organization that advertises itself to be fair and balanced pressured us to broadcast false and distorted news over the public airwaves," said Wilson.

"Getting the verdict overturned on the grounds that lying on the air and distorting news reports is technically not against any law, rule or regulation only compounds the disgrace," he added.

"Regardless of the success with Florida appellate justices who finally bought an argument rejected by three other courts on six different occasions, the jury decision in this case is a stink that will never wash off.

"Now its all about punishment and making an example to discourage the next Fox journalist who might have the audacity to challenge the next unethical order from these broadcasters who should not be allowed to watch television, much less own and operate stations around the country," Wilson said.

[Editor’s Note: Akre and Wilson will appear Thursday, October 14, 2004 for a special Media Tank discussion about their experiences and how media consolidation is affecting what we see and hear in the mainstream media. They will also show clips of The Corporation, an award-winning film about corporate dominance in America today. The meeting is at 7:30pm at the University of the Arts Connelly Lecture Hall-Terra Building 211 South Broad Street, (between Walnut & Locust streets), Philadelphia.]