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2019-02-20 Home Front: Culture Wars

Covington Catholic Teen Sues The Washington Post for $250 Million

h/t Instapundit
[DailyBeast] Nick Sandmann, the Kentucky high school student at the center of a viral confrontation with a Native American elder in front of the Lincoln Memorial last month, has filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Washington Post. According to a press release from the law firm Hemmer, DeFrank, and Wessels, the suit alleges that the Post "ignored basic journalist standards" and waged "malicious attacks" on Sandmann by "falsely accusing him" of instigating the tense standoff with Phillips. The lawsuit claims the Post's coverage "caused permanent damage to [Sandmann's] life and reputation" because the paper "wanted to advance its well-known and easily documented, biased agenda against President Donald J. Trump" by targeting Trump supporters. The suit further claims the newspaper published "False and Defamatory Accusations," proving itself to be a "loud and aggressive bully with a bully pulpit." Sandmann and his attorneys seek $50 million in compensatory damages and $200 million in punitive damages to "teach the Post a lesson it will never forget." The suit also notes that $250 million is the same amount Amazon founder Jeff Bezos bought the newspaper for in 2013.

Pocket change for Mr. Bezos, perhaps, but meaningful to everybody else threatened by similar law suits.

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-02-20 00:59|| || Front Page|| [11138 views ] Top

#1 MOAR Please!

Posted by newc 2019-02-20 01:16|| 2019-02-20 01:16|| Front Page Top

#2 Multiply the any award by the number of Covington kids libeled.

Posted by Shoth Schwarzeneggar3463 2019-02-20 06:06|| 2019-02-20 06:06|| Front Page Top

#3 Got to hand it to Nick’s parents for doing the right thing. God bless and good luck.

Posted by jvalentour 2019-02-20 06:58|| 2019-02-20 06:58|| Front Page Top

#4 Next will by NYT with the Mexican zillionarie? Then will it be CNN or NBCx and it's owner Comcast?

Posted by 3dc 2019-02-20 07:04|| 2019-02-20 07:04|| Front Page Top

#5 They're argument is going to be that the kids were public personalities and this is a threat to the 1st Amendment.

1) the media by its actions made them public, they were never public before hand.
2) the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment makes the definition of 'public vs private personalities' incompatible with the document as written.
3) the media which has no problems going after other business for product failures and endangerment should be held to the same standard.
4) the 'press' in the 1st Amendment was referring to the technology of the age, the intent was the free distribution of information not a corporate institution.
5) Given the pols and courts have upheld encroaching controls on 2nd Amendment rights, its only fitting and payback to do the same to billion dollar Infotainment businesses.

Posted by Procopius2k 2019-02-20 08:26|| 2019-02-20 08:26|| Front Page Top

#6 Justice Thomas wrote a minority opinion arguing that the Supreme Court case immunizing the media in this way should be reviewed. I think it was Sullivan...

What a 'coincidence'

Posted by Ptah 2019-02-20 10:37|| http://crusaderwarcollege.org 2019-02-20 10:37|| Front Page Top

#7 It will be difficult for WaPo to argue absence of malice as they made no effort to check the facts.

Popcorn, please...

Posted by regular joe 2019-02-20 10:52|| 2019-02-20 10:52|| Front Page Top

#8 It will be difficult for WaPo to argue absence of malice as they made no effort to check the facts.

nevertheless

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-02-20 11:35|| 2019-02-20 11:35|| Front Page Top

#9 A bunch of factors favor this teen's lawsuit:
he is a juvenile, no record of political activity (he bought the MAGA hat in DC), first time he ever traveled out of state, he did absolutely nothing in response beyond standing and smiling. Mainstream media got nothing except a bunch of high priced jury consultants who will need to pack this jury well to win.

Posted by Airandee 2019-02-20 12:06|| 2019-02-20 12:06|| Front Page Top

#10 Might be difficult to prove that Bezos knew in advance that these kids would be subject to death threats as well as all the other social media harassment they have endured but, if I was on the jury, I'd believe it.

$250 million is a paltry sum for the richest man in the world. They should go for $10 billion. You have to make it hurt the guy.

Posted by Abu Uluque 2019-02-20 13:22|| 2019-02-20 13:22|| Front Page Top

#11 If the lawsuit doesn't hurt him, Bezos will think he can keep on libeling anybody he wants with impunity.

Posted by Abu Uluque 2019-02-20 13:25|| 2019-02-20 13:25|| Front Page Top

#12 The suit is against the WaPo, not Bezos. $250M is what he paid for the ~~DC Pravda~~ WaPost

Posted by Frank G 2019-02-20 14:58|| 2019-02-20 14:58|| Front Page Top

#13 I suppose the Post could always apologize.

[snicker]

Posted by Bobby 2019-02-20 17:46|| 2019-02-20 17:46|| Front Page Top

#14 Bobby, my bet is that it is too late for that.

Posted by Rambler in Virginia 2019-02-20 19:01|| 2019-02-20 19:01|| Front Page Top

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