Are Defamation Lawsuits Being Used to Rein in Disinformation Spread by News Outlets?
Using defamation suits to combat misinformation has some free speech advocates uneasy, as the First Amendment provides broad protections for news organizations.
Local Oregon Newspaper Wins Major Public Records Battle
The Malheur Enterprise, a local newspaper, requested documents last October as part of its ongoing investigation into whether a state legislator was using his official position to help his private business. On February 5th, the county's district attorney ordered the government agency to disclose the unredacted documents.
Fox’s lawyers argue that they had a First Amendment privilege to report newsworthy allegations–even false ones–in a neutral way. They also claim that Smartmatic failed to establish a key requirement of a defamation claim—that Piro, Dobbs, and Bartiromo acted with “actual malice.”
Justice Department Drops Case Against Former Aide to Melania Trump
Filed in October 2020, the lawsuit claimed that Ms. Wolkoff's tell-all memoir had violated a non-disclosure agreement she signed. The Justice Department abandoned the case on February 8th.
Authors Share Excerpts on Free Speech: Ian Rosenberg and The Marketplace of Ideas
In "The Fight for Free Speech," Ian Rosenberg distills the last century of First Amendment law into ten critical issues. The first chapter, excerpted here, traces the story of several anarchists who were tried under the Espionage Act of 1917 for distributing anti-war pamphlets.
Student Sues University of Tennessee for Violating Her Free Speech Rights
On February 3rd, a University of Tennessee student sued the school for violating her First Amendment right to free speech. Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Western Division, Kimberly Diei says that she was nearly expelled from the university’s graduate pharmacy program for her social media posts.
Smartmatic Sues Fox News For $2.7 Billion Over Election Fraud Claims
Smartmatic claims Fox spread lies about the company it knew weren't true in order to curry favor with then-President Trump and his base. The company expects it will lose almost $500 million in the next five years due to the impact the lies have had on its business.
Incarcerated Journalist Claims Prison Officials Punished Him for Reporting on COVID-19 Outbreak
Private prison officials at a halfway house in California seized an incarcerated journalist’s phone and delayed his release after he texted a colleague about a COVID-19 outbreak at the facility, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court on February 2nd.