Sarah Palin loses defamation case that she brought against the New York Times

[lpetrich]

Judge throws out Palin libel case against New York Times - POLITICO

This was because of an editorial that implied a link between a page showing targeted states and some shootings. The page, made by Sarah Palin's campaigners, showed a map of the US with targets drawn on some states, and the shootings were literal physical shootings, like of Rep. Steve Scalise. He and some others were shot by Bernie Sanders admirer James Hodgkinson, and that shooter was killed as a result of a shootout with some cops.  Congressional baseball shooting - Scalise shooter took for than 40 rounds to stop, report says - the cops' shooting of him was judged to be justified, and I agree with that judgment.

A judge has ruled that a libel lawsuit former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin filed against the New York Times over a 2017 editorial should be thrown out because her lawyers failed to produce adequate evidence that the newspaper knew what it wrote about her was false or acted recklessly toward indications it was false.

The ruling from U.S. District Court Judge Jed Rakoff Monday came as a Manhattan jury was deliberating on Palin’s suit, which claimed the Times and former editorial page editor James Bennet defamed her by unfairly linking her to a 2011 shooting spree in Arizona that killed six people and gravely wounded then-Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.).

...
The editorial, titled “America’s Lethal Politics,” was published on the day a gunman opened fire on a congressional GOP baseball practice in Alexandria, Va., badly wounding Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) and three other people. The gunman in that attack, who was killed at the scene, was a fan of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

However, Bennet testified that the Times saw the event as an occasion to urge politicians at both ends of the political spectrum to tone down their rhetoric. He said he introduced language into the editorial that suggested a direct link between a targeting map issued by Palin’s political action committee and the 2011 Arizona shooting. No such link was ever established, but Bennet said he wasn’t trying to imply there was a cause-and-effect relationship, just that there was rhetoric specifically targeting Giffords in advance of that shooting.

The Times issued two corrections to the disputed editorial within hours, but Palin claimed they were inadequate and that the publication damaged her reputation, leading to fewer speaking engagements and requests for political help.

...
till, the judge said the key question was whether Bennet harbored serious doubt about the truth of his statements at the time they were published. Rakoff said there was no evidence the editor had any concern about the accuracy of the statements until a colleague emailed him after the editorial was posted online.

As he issued his ruling, Rakoff gave the Times a mild tongue-lashing.

“Ms. Palin was subjected to an ultimately unsupported and very serious allegation that Mr. Bennet chose to revisit 7 years or so after the underlying events,” the judge said. “I think this is an example of very unfortunate editorializing on the part of the Times but, having said that, that’s not the issue before this court.”

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Palin was the opening of Pandora's Box. This is when the alt-right became normalized, leading to the cluster that was the 2012 Republican Primary and then ultimately to the asshat getting the nomination in 2016. Her entire schtick is centered around anger and division.

 

[laughing dog]

The jury found for the NYT. Jury finds for the NYT in Palin libel suit

 

[TLK Valentine]

I will lose a lot of respect for the press if I don't see at least one "Palin failin'" headline....

Maybe not from the NY Times, but at least the Post...

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

I will lose a lot of respect for the press if I don't see at least one "Palin failin'" headline....

Maybe not from the NY Times, but at least the Post...

NY Daily News should have you covered, though this isn't much front page stuff, as Palin hasn't mattered since she stopped not running for President.

A quick Check, NY Daily News has one mention of her lawsuit near bottom of their homepage. NY Post, zero references to Palin on their homepage.

 

[TLK Valentine]

I will lose a lot of respect for the press if I don't see at least one "Palin failin'" headline....

Maybe not from the NY Times, but at least the Post...

NY Daily News should have you covered, though this isn't much front page stuff, as Palin hasn't mattered since she stopped not running for President.

A quick Check, NY Daily News has one mention of her lawsuit near bottom of their homepage. NY Post, zero references to Palin on their homepage.

Disappointing -- it's not like the Post or the News to let a line like that slip past them...