This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

P launched One American News Network (OAN) in 2013. OAN is a 'leading conservative voice in American news.' Kristian Rouz is an employee of OAN. 'Rouz collects and analyzes articles from other sources and writes articles based on those sources for OAN.' Rouz also wrote articles as a freelancer for Sputnik News, a Russian state-financed news organization. 'Rouz chose the topics and viewpoints of the articles he wrote for Sputnik News' and earned approximately forty dollars per article. P alleges that Rouz's work for Sputnik News 'had no relation to his work for OAN,' despite Rouz working for the organizations at the same time. On July 22, 2019, The Daily Beast published an article entitled 'Trump's New Favorite Channel Employs Kremlin-Paid Journalist.' Kevin Poulsen, the author, stated: 'If the stories broadcast by the Trump-endorsed One America News Network sometimes look like outtakes from a Kremlin trolling operation, there may be a reason. One of the on-air reporters at the 24-hour network is a Russian national on the payroll of the Kremlin's official propaganda outlet, Sputnik.' The article asserted that 'Kremlin propaganda sometimes sneaks into Rouz's segments on unrelated matters, dropped in as offhand background information.' The article also quoted a former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent, who stated: 'This completes the merger between Russian state-sponsored propaganda and American conservative media. . . . We used to think of it as 'They just have the same views' or 'They use the same story leads.' But now they have the same personnel.' P, host of The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC, ran a segment entitled 'Staffer on Trump-Favored Network Is on Propaganda Kremlin Payroll.' D stated: I mean, it's an easy thing to throw out, you know, like an epitaph in the Trump era, right? Hey, that looks like Russian propaganda. In this case, the most obsequiously pro-Trump right-wing news outlet in America really literally is paid Russian propaganda. They're [sic] on air U.S. politics reporter is paid by the Russian government to produce propaganda for that government. P sued Ds. P did not sue The Daily Beast or Kevin Poulsen. P's case concerned the following comment that D included in her July 22nd segment: OAN 'really literally is paid Russian propaganda.' P alleged that the statement is utterly and completely false' because 'OAN has never been paid or received a penny from Russia or the Russian government.' Ds moved to strike the complaint pursuant to California's anti-SLAPP law. Ds argued that the speech is fully protected by California law and the First Amendment because it is an opinion based on fully disclosed facts, is not susceptible to the meaning P ascribes to it, and-even if it could be considered factual-is substantially true. The district court granted the motion to strike. P appealed. P argues that the district court erred in concluding that no reasonable viewer could have understood D's statement as fact. Herring contends that the statement is susceptible of being proved true or false; that the inclusion of 'really literally' demonstrates the statement was not opinion; that D's use of The Daily Beast article made the statement appear as fact; and that the broad context of the statement indicated that the statement was not opinion. P avers that even if Maddow's statement was hyperbole, she 'falsely implied an actual connection between OAN's news content and Russia.'

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