Media outlet wins court victory over billionaire
By Monika Bauerlein and Clara Jeffery, Mother Jones
Today we are happy to announce a monumental legal victory for Mother Jones: A judge in Idaho has ruled in our favor on all claims in a defamation case filed by a major Republican donor, Frank VanderSloot, and his company, Melaleuca Inc. In a decision issued Tuesday, the court found that Mother Jones did not defame VanderSloot or Melaleuca because “all of the statements at issue are non-actionable truth or substantial truth.” The court also found that the statements were protected as fair comment under the First Amendment.
This is the culmination of a lengthy, expensive legal saga that began three years ago when the 2012 presidential primaries were in full swing. On Feb. 6, 2012, we published an article about VanderSloot after it emerged that his company, Melaleuca, and its subsidiaries had given $1 million to Mitt Romney’s super-PAC. The piece noted that VanderSloot had gone to unusual lengths to oppose gay rights in Idaho, and that Melaleuca had run into trouble with regulators.
VanderSloot’s lawyers sent us a letter complaining about the article. We reviewed their concerns and posted a correction about a few details. So far, not an uncommon scenario; it’s something every newsroom deals with from time to time.
Mother Jones and Lake Tahoe News; two of my favorite muckrakers. If Amazon carried your work I’d write killer reviews for both of you.
Muckrakers do a wonderful service except when they are driven by political ideology as all too often is the case.
What will happen to Rolling Stone after their totally bogus story of a college rape?
I just wish the legal system was changed. One of the things I would like to see is that the loser pays all the costs of the winner.
I’d also like to see stiffer use of frivolous lawsuits laws.
Liberals faking college rape stories for an
agenda? The liberal media have a history of inventing facts if they aren’t there and trying to pawn them off to their rabid readers as truth like this article attempts when the judge scolded the leftist media outlet and people called the case a draw and waste of money on both sides. People should ask Dan Blather about fraud and forgery at any cost and how it worked out for him and don’t forget his lying pal Brian Williams from NBC and his imitation of Mrs. Bill Clinton lying about being under fire in war zones. Real liberal media heroes there.
Bob couldn’t agree more. Tort reform isn’t likely when all the players are on one side.
Justn@ss wants to talk about liars… Great! Did Dan Rather or Brian Williams get 4500 GI’s Killed In Iraq because of lies about WMD’s, Yellow Cake and 911? ABSOLUTELY NOT! It was your pals: Bush Jr, Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld and Powell!
Stick to your Xenophobia, Homophobia and Negrophobia Justn@ss, because you are a moron when it comes to History, Science, Math or Economics.
So Dan, exactly how would you implement “tort reform?”