JOURN 4000 1st Edition Lecture 19 Outline of Last Lecture I Libel Outline of Current Lecture I Libel Current Lecture DDT hurt bird populations Started first big case on neutral reporting privileges NY Second Circuit Court of Appeals National Audubon Society claimed that scientists being paid to lie about effects of DDT NY Times reported story Neutral reporting is OK Journalists believes reasonably that the report conveys charges made Have to stay neutral Privilege to report based on a police report Common interest privilege Schaeffer vs Lamar Publishing Co in Lamar MO Town meeting police offer got 16 year old daughter pregnant Newspaper reported without investigation Open to public the report is privileged an open to the public Newspaper was not obliged to investigate These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute Williams vs Pulitzer Broadcasting Co St Louis Chris Condon covering special committee investigating health in hospitals Committee informed Condon that they would subpoena a man named Robert Williams got the wrong person the first two times Got the wrong Robert Williams Condon Pulitzer Broadcasting lost Opinion protection Fair comment Rhetorical hyperbole language being used in an over the top manner Labor dispute people not honoring picket lines used the word traitor SC said it was not defamatory 1901 Cherry vs Des Moines Leader Music review The Cherry Sisters Fair comment Undisclosed defamatory facts Implication that you know more information Cannot do this many jurisdictions require you to give enough facts so people can reach their own conclusions Evans vs Ollman Ollman was a political activist called a Communist by the columnist Ollman test draws the line between opinion and fact Common meaning of the word precise meaning that can be proved true false facts loosely definable opinion Placement front page facts editorial opinion Social context 1 Definiteness of the language 2 Verifiability 3 Linguistic context 4 Social context Milkovich case Ohio Can t label a fact as an opinion and get opinion protection Wrestling match Milkovich doesn t stop fight but eggs them on Reporter said he was lying while testifying Book reviews have special protection Moldea vs NY Times Interference about organized crime and professional football NY Times said it was bad and filled with sloppy reporting Moldea sued at first court agreed with Moldea changed its ming Supportable interpretation if anyone else can agree with your opinion you ve passed it The Globe case Assassination of Robert Kennedy Globe does book review on the murder of Kennedy said mafia and Iran killed Kennedy Front page Iranian Secret Police Killed Bobby Kennedy espousal Blamed person who was a journalist from Pakistan was targeted by public Globe lost Committed an error retraction do not try to defend yourself Make sure retraction is given prominence of original story Mitigating circumstances Won t totally erase the libel Will assure that there will be no punitive damages
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