Media Matters

When Courts Punish Journalists, the Public Suffers

The First Amendment gives every member of the public the right to access court records and proceedings. As the Supreme … Read More

Duke sings the “White Lotus” blues

Now that The White Lotus has wrapped, talk of Duke University is fading. But as attorneys who love both Duke … Read More

Newsweek Wins Defamation Case Brought by The Satanic Temple

A long-running legal battle between The Satanic Temple and Newsweek has finally wrapped up—with the firm’s client, Newsweek, emerging on … Read More

The Death of Actual Malice: Greatly Exaggerated

Casino magnate Steve Wynn took a big swing at overturning a landmark press freedom ruling, but the Supreme Court basically … Read More

Making Marsy’s Law (better)

When Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment known as “Marsy’s Law” – named for Marsy Nicholas, the UC Santa Barbara … Read More

Actual Malice Is Not “Malice”

Even as plaintiffs in defamation cases attack the actual malice standard, they often mistake what “actual malice” really means. A … Read More

6/11 - A federal judge dismissed Justin Baldoni's $400 million lawsuit against Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, and The New York Times, marking a significant legal setback for the actor-director. The suit stemmed from allegations surrounding the 2024 film "It Ends With Us," where Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and retaliation.

Judge Lewis Liman ruled that Baldoni failed to demonstrate that Lively's demands for more safeguards on set or creative control constituted "wrongful extortion” under California law. The court also found that Lively’s allegedly defamatory statements were privileged because they were made as part of her complaint to the California Civil Rights Department about harassment on set. Regarding The Times, the court held that many of its statements were also privileged, and that Baldoni had failed to show the Times acted with “actual malice” because it had no obvious motive to favor Lively's account in its reporting.

The court gave Baldoni until June 23, however, to file an amended complaint related to claims that Lively breached her contract with Baldoni and his production company.

6/5 - A federal judge has dismissed a $100 million defamation lawsuit filed by Joseph Sherman, Sean "Diddy" Combs’ former bodyguard, against Thalia Graves. Sherman sued Graves after she accused him and Diddy of drugging and raping her in 2001 in a lawsuit filed in September 2024. He denied the allegations, asserting he had never met Graves and had ceased working for Diddy in 1999. However, U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres ruled that Sherman’s defamation claim is barred by New York’s absolute litigation privilege, which protects statements made in the course of legal proceedings. The judge also rejected Sherman’s other claims, including intentional infliction of emotional distress, abuse of process, vexatious litigation, and malicious prosecution, calling them "patently frivolous" or unsupported under New York law. The decision reinforces the legal principle that individuals cannot be sued for defamation over allegations made in the context of formal legal action, even if those allegations are contested.

5/29 - A Florida federal judge has allowed a wrongful death lawsuit to proceed against Character Technologies, the company behind Character.AI, but has rejected the defendants’ argument that their chatbots are protected under the First Amendment—at least for now. The suit alleges that a Character.AI chatbot engaged in emotionally and sexually abusive interactions with a 14-year-old boy, leading to his suicide. In the ruling, the judge declined to recognize chatbot output as protected speech at this stage, but did affirm the First Amendment rights of users to receive such content. The decision marks a significant moment in the evolving legal landscape surrounding artificial intelligence and constitutional protections. The court also allowed claims against Google to proceed, citing its alleged involvement in the chatbot’s development. Legal experts say the case could serve as a precedent-setting test of free speech in the context of generative AI, raising broader questions about corporate accountability and user safety.

5/15 - A federal judge in Illinois has dismissed a defamation and privacy lawsuit filed by Nikko D’Ambrosio against Meta, members of the private Facebook group “Are We Dating the Same Guy?” and its moderators. D’Ambrosio alleged defamation, doxxing, and violations of the Illinois Right of Publicity Act after women in the group posted about him and his dating behavior. U.S. District Judge Sunil R. Harjani ruled that D’Ambrosio failed to allege any false statements or show that the posts met the legal threshold for defamation per se. He also did not demonstrate that his photo was used for commercial purposes, a requirement for his publicity claim. The court found the group’s content largely consisted of protected opinion, not actionable defamatory statements. The ruling underscores the difficulty of pursuing defamation claims based on online speech, especially when the content is framed as personal opinion.

5/1 - In a legal motion filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, attorneys for Warner Bros. and Ample LLC argue that Chris Brown’s $500 million defamation lawsuit over the documentary Chris Brown: A History of Violence should be dismissed under California’s anti-SLAPP statute, which protects against lawsuits aimed at chilling free speech on matters of public interest. Brown’s lawsuit, filed in January, claims the documentary knowingly spread false and damaging accusations, harming his reputation and career. He also alleges intentional infliction of emotional distress and seeks punitive damages. Defendants contend the documentary's portrayal of Brown, including allegations of sexual assault, constitutes protected speech under the First Amendment and California’s fair report privilege. They characterize Brown’s suit as a typical attempt by a public figure to silence critical media coverage based on information from public records and legal proceedings.

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Media Matters

Cameron Stracher

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