Libel is the printed or visual defamation of a person

Libel is the printed or visual defamation of a

person

If the defamation is spoken – that is

slander.

What is defamation?

When someone feels ridiculed or their

reputation has been harmed

Stories, pictures, cutlines, headlines or cartoons can

be libelous

Editorials & letters to the editor can be libelous

If the person’s respect, esteem or goodwill in the

community is lowered

If the statement implies the person committed a crime

If the material provokes others to feel negative or derogatory towards him

If it implies the person has a disease that would

make others shun him

If the person is deprived of the right to

earn a living

If the statement damages a person’s

credit

If the statement indicates a lack of chastity or mental

capacity

There are three types of libel

1.Libel per se

2. Libel per quod

3. Criminal libel

Libel per se

This means the statement alone caused

injury & no additional proof is needed to show damages. It is the most

serious type of libel.

Libel per se

John T. Smith of 2345 Main Street was arrested yesterday

for robbery.

What if the robber was John T. Smith who lived at 2345 Moore Street? This story has libeled

the John T. Smith of Main Street. This is Libel per se.

Libel per quod

This would be a statement that is harmless except for special

circumstances that could cause damage. This is the most

common form of libel & usually occurs because of a mistake

that is not obvious.

Libel per quod

For example:

It is reported that your schools’ tennis star Jared Allred won a tennis match against Justin Todd on Saturday. But the

match was actually on Friday. Just based on that alone the

statement does not seem libelous, but….

What if one of those athletes is a member of a religion that

observes their Sabbath on Saturday which is suppose to be a day of meditation & rest? This

statement is now libelous because it makes him seem as if he is not a devote member of his church. This has damaged his

reputation in his church.

Another example: If a newspaper calls the Hilton

Hotel a firetrap & this frightens guests away, the newspaper would face a

libel suit because the circumstances damaged

the hotel owners.

However, if the dangerous However, if the dangerous building was an empty building was an empty warehouse whose owners warehouse whose owners do not have a business do not have a business there, there is no basis for there, there is no basis for a libel suit. No damage to a libel suit. No damage to a reputation has occurred.a reputation has occurred.

THE PIHF CHECKLISTTHE PIHF CHECKLIST

There are four elements a person must establish in order to prove he or she has been defamed: (1) Publication, (2) Identification, (3) Harm and (4) Fault. Each of the four elements must be proven. For example, even if a story you have written meets the publication, harm and fault elements, a libel claim will still fail if you have not identified the claimant.

http://splc.org/legalresearch.asp?id=27

I.I. PublicationPublication

A statement is "published" if it is communicated to someone other than the person whom the statement is about.

Publication can take many forms and does not simply mean that the statement has been printed in a newspaper or other document. For example, a defamatory statement's presence on a computer screen in the newsroom where it is read by other students could constitute publication.

II. IdentificationII. Identification

A statement "identifies" a person if it is shown that it is "of and concerning" that person.

Disguising a Subject's IdentityWhere you successfully omit or alter a subject's identity, they cannot successfully sue you for libel. Care should be taken that: (1) the subject's identity has been disguised enough so that no one can reasonably make an identification and (2) the disguised subject does not resemble some third party who would then have cause for complaint. Every story should clearly state what facts have been altered.

PublicationPublication Group Libel

Individuals can be defamed; groups of people cannot be. The key question is whether a statement about a group can reasonably be interpreted to refer to a specific individual in the group. While there is no hard rule, several courts have indicated that individual members of a group larger than 25 will have a difficult time proving that they have suffered individual harm. On the other hand, individuals in a smaller group may be able to claim that their reputation has been damaged. For example, the generic statement, "the tennis team is being investigated for substance abuse" could subject a publication to a libel suit if the team consists of just 12 members.

III.III. HarmHarm A statement is harmful if it seriously shames, ridicules,

disgraces or injures a person's reputation or causes others to do so. Statements that are mildly embarrassing or merely confusing or inaccurate will not meet the "harm" test.

The following are examples of "Red Flag" statements that could cause significant harm to a person's reputation; extra caution is advised:

Statements regarding improper sexual conduct. (For example, printing that an unmarried student is pregnant.)

Statements that associate someone with a vile disease. Statements that accuse someone of illegal behavior. Statements that hurt someone's livelihood. Statements that allege racial or religious bigotry.

IV.IV. FaultFault In order to be "at fault" in publishing a statement,

the person suing must prove that the reporter either did something they should not have done or that they failed to do something that they should have done. If the reporter did everything a "reasonable reporter" should have done to verify the information in his or her story before publishing it - for example, talked to all sides, obtained and read all relevant documents, took accurate notes, etc. - the reporter is not legally "at fault."

People suing for libel who are either public officials or public figures will often have to prove a higher level of fault than an ordinary person.

The Public Official/Public Figure The Public Official/Public Figure StandardStandard

New York Times Company v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964).In order for a public official or a public figure to prove defamation, they must prove actual malice. Actual malice requires that the person suing prove that the challenged statement was published by those who either knew it was false or were reckless in verifying its accuracy.


Who is a Public Official?The Supreme Court has said that a public official is one who, at the very least, has or appears to the public to have, a substantial responsibility for or control over governmental affairs.


Who is a Public Figure? There are two categories:(1) General Purpose Public Figure: a "celebrity," whose pervasive fame or notoriety has made his or her name a "household word."(2) Limited Purpose Public Figure: someone who has voluntarily assumed a leading role in a particular public controversy.

Standard for Private Persons Standard for Private Persons (everyone else)(everyone else)

In most states, a private person need only prove that a reporter was inattentive, that is, that the reporter made a mistake - perhaps an innocent one - that a "reasonable" reporter should not have made.

DEFENSES TO LIBEL CLAIMSDEFENSES TO LIBEL CLAIMS

If a libel plaintiff proves each of the four PIHF elements, the burden then shifts to the publication to offer one of the following defenses:

(1) Consent: A person who consents to the media's use of a libelous statement about him cannot later sue if the statement does, in fact, injure his or her reputation. Note that special issues can arise when dealing with a younger person's ability to provide valid consent. (See discussion at: SPLC Legal Brief: Invasion of Privacy.)


(2) Truth Truth, while it must still be proven, is an

absolute defense to libel. In many cases involving media defendants the burden is actually on the person suing - not on the publication - to prove the falsity of specific statements.

DEFENSES TO LIBEL CLAIMSDEFENSES TO LIBEL CLAIMS (3) Privilege Subject to several requirements, which may vary

by state, the media is protected from liability when they publish fair and accurate accounts of official public proceedings and reports even if the information reported later turns out to be false. For example, if a police report states that "Jack Smith was arrested" and a newspaper accurately reports the information, the newspaper will not be held liable even if it is later revealed that police actually arrested Jack Brown and officers made a mistake when they wrote down his name. To qualify for the privilege:


The information must be obtained from a record or proceeding recognized by the state as "official".

The media report must be fair and accurate. A "fair" report is one that is balanced and presented in context.

The source of the statement should be clearly noted in the media report.

DEFENSES TO LIBEL CLAIMSDEFENSES TO LIBEL CLAIMS (4) Opinion Versus Fact Statements of pure opinion cannot be libelous.

However, simply leading off an article with "In my opinion...", publishing something on the opinion page or using the word "alleged" provides no automatic protection from a libel charge. The test is whether the expression is capable of being proven true or false. Pure opinions, by their very nature, cannot be proven true or false. Milkovich v. Lorain Journal Co., 497 U.S. 1 (1990)

Criminal libelCriminal libel

This is when a person or This is when a person or company publishes material company publishes material that causes a riot or that causes a riot or disturbs the peace. The suit disturbs the peace. The suit is brought by the U.S. is brought by the U.S. Government.Government.

Criminal Libel

Lawsuits can be filed Lawsuits can be filed against the person or against the person or newspaper committing libel. newspaper committing libel. The payment is not usually The payment is not usually in jail time, but in monetary in jail time, but in monetary damage – up to millions of damage – up to millions of dollars.dollars.

Case study

During the 1996 Goodwill Games in Atlanta a bomb exploded. Richard Jewell’s name was

released to the media through an unnamed source. He was only a suspect & had not been charged

with a crime. Is this libel?

Yes it is libel. He was only a suspect & in fact was cleared of all charges.

Jewell sued many news organizations which

released his name. He won.

NBC $500,000 – agreed to pay to protect unnamed source

New York Post (cartoon) – Undisclosed. Sued for $15

million

CNN – Undisclosed amount Claims coverage was fair &

accurate

To win a libel suit, the person must prove all of the following:

1) The reporter was negligent

2) The information was false

3) The information was printed or spoken

4) It referred to a specific person, business or product

5) The person’s reputation was damaged

For public figures, it also has to be proven the information was

published intentionally, with actual malice. Private people do not have to prove actual malice.

Public figures are anyone who has put themselves in the public

spotlight.

Photos can be libelous. At one high school, a yearbook photo of

three girls had mustaches & armpit hair added. As a result, the

school had to recall 500 yearbooks already printed, or the

school would have had to pay thousands of dollars in

reimbursement to the girls.

The best defense against libel is to avoid publishing

anything for which you or the school could be sued. Check facts carefully, make sure you consult more than one source & avoid publishing something maliciously. Avoid the danger

words.

If you do publish something libelous, a respectful attitude &

publishing a retraction will often help prevent a court

case from being filed.

If you have questionable material, the best defense is double checking & referring

the article to a lawyer. Students can use the Student

Press Law Center ([email protected])

Defenses

Truth - This is an absolute defense. If the statement is true, then you are not guilty.

The problem occurs in proving the truth. Your witness may not

testify (unnamed sources) or may not be believed. Your

documents may not be allowed as evidence.

Also, be careful. Your proof may be that someone said it, & you have that on tape. Attribution is not a

defense. You still have to prove the statement is true.

Privilege – If the statement was said during an official

judicial or legislative session, you are safe from a libel suit. The reason is the public has a large stake in knowing what goes on in a courtroom or in

the legislature.

Question:

If one senator calls another senator a liar in the lobby of the state legislature & you

print it, is that libel?

Fair Comment – You are free to give opinions in reviewing books,

records, events, movies, etc.

Careful!

If you say the cookbook is poorly written because it does not

include healthy items & it does - that is libel. Facts must be true.

If you just say the recipes tasted bad (your opinion) that is

protected.

You also can only attack what is being reviewed & not the person behind it. You can

only attack the ‘public’ part of the performance (book, music,

movie).

You can not say the author is a bad writer because he is an

immoral person.

Question:

You review a concert & say “the music sounded like a

preschooler wrote it.” Is that libelous?

What if you say “the lead singer is a drug addict who

can’t write songs”?

Admission of Error – You made a mistake, but you correct your

mistake immediately. This doesn’t always work, but it can

help. It shows it was not malicious (done on purpose).

Often it will reduce the judgment against you. Some states allow it

as a stronger defense.

Are these statements libelous?

- Actor John Smith is a wife abuser.

-The meal tasted like dog food.

- The President is an idiot. He said the South won the Civil

War. (He was in the Supreme Court when he said it.)

Libel is the printed or visual defamation of a person

Documents