Term
| Bob mailed a letter to the editor of Bird World magazine. He complained about an article that quoted Dr. Winston Smithfield IV on the sleeping habits of peacocks. Bob's letter was printed, including a part reading, "I don't know why such a fine magazine as Bird World would quote 'Dr.' Smithfield. Everyone in the birding community knows he is a fraud and does not even have a Ph.D. even though he tells people he does." Dr. Smithfield, who does have a Ph.D., sees the letter and decides to sue the magazine. What type of lawsuit is this? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| Bob mailed a letter to the editor of Bird World magazine. He complained about an article that quoted Dr. Winston Smithfield IV on the sleeping habits of peacocks. Bob's letter was printed, including a part reading, "I don't know why such a fine magazine as Bird World would quote 'Dr.' Smithfield. Everyone in the birding community knows he is a fraud and does not even have a Ph.D. even though he tells people he does." Dr. Smithfield, who does have a Ph.D., sees the letter and decides to sue the magazine. What term describes the legal status of the magazine? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| Bob Larson, an insurance salesman, was very distressed one morning while shaving in his home at 101 Laurel St. because the TV news in the background was reporting a story. "WWLN has learned that Bob Larson of 101 Laurel St. was arrested in Texas for drunken driving and fled the state. Now Texas has issued a warrant for his arrest," the announcer said. Bob Larson had not been to Texas and had never been stopped or charged with drunken driving. He called the TV station immediately and the announcer, laughing, said someone from Bob's office had called and asked him to read the story as a prank. The announced retracted the story and said it was a prank before the end of the newscast. Bob sues for libel because he didn't think it was so funny. Which of the following is true? |
|
Definition
| The TV station will likely be required to pay damages. |
|
|
Term
| A statement is defamatory when it: |
|
Definition
A.
Gives a person public cooties.
|
| |
B.
Tends to make someone think less of the person the statement is about.
|
| |
C.
Injures the reputation of the person the statement is about.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
Term
A statement is opinion if it:
|
|
|
Definition
A.
Can't be proved true or false.
|
| |
B.
Includes any reference to health.
|
| |
C.
Includes any reference to morality.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
Term
| Actual malice is a legal term of art describing what burden of proof? |
|
Definition
| The defendant knew the published information was false of acted in reckless disregard of whether it was true or false. |
|
|
Term
The Associated Press, a news service, issued a story that hundreds of media outlets used. As it happened, the story contained statements that were clearly libelous. What result?
|
|
|
Definition
| The Associated Press is liable for damages, but not the individual media outlets |
|
|
Term
While they were in junior high, Sue took a photo of her friend, Mary, dressed up in an orange jail jumpsuit for a Halloween party. Sue posted the photo on Facebook. Everybody who saw it thought it was hilarious, including Mary and her parents. A couple of years later, Mary applied to Yale. Her admission was denied and the rejection letter indicated she would have been accepted except for her jail photo Yale's admissions staff had found on the Internet. Mary sues sue for libel. What result?
|
|
|
Definition
| The statute of limitations has expired. |
|
|
Term
Bob misreads an article to say that a U.S. senator from his state voted against financial aid to Israel. In fact, the Senator voted for the aid and the article said so. But Bob is a big supporter of Israel and posts on the senator's website that the senator is a "liar, coward and has betrayed the trust voters placed in him." Now because the senator has control of posts on website, he directs that the post be removed. Which of the following is true?
|
|
|
Definition
| If the senator sues Bob, the senator will have to prove actual malice. |
|
|
Term
| Jim posts on Facebook, "I keep seeing Mary's car at my neighbor's house when I come home from work and it's there when I leave the next morning. I wonder if Mary's husband (who works nights) knows she spends the night with my neighbor, Bob." As it happens, some of Jim's friends are friends of Mary. She hears about the post and sues Jim for libel. As soon as he gets a copy of the suit, Jim goes next door and finds out, to his dismay, that the car - exactly the same make, model and color of Mary's - is a recent purchase by Bob's daughter, who lives with him. What result? |
|
Definition
It doesn't matter that Jim didn't explicitly accuse Mary of adultery. His implication was clear enough to be a "false statement of fact." |
|
|
Term
Bob texts his Media Law classmate and tells her he sees her at the campus library almost every night and she appears to be "looking for somebody." The classmate takes the comment as an insult to her character and sues Bob for libel. What result?
|
|
|
Definition
Bob wins because a text sent to an individual is not publishing. |
|
|
Term
In libel cases, a plaintiff has to prove actual malice on the part of the defendant when the plaintiff is:
|
|
|
Definition
A.
A public official acting in his or her public capacity.
|
| |
B.
A celebrity, anyone who has become a "household name."
|
| |
C.
A limited purpose public figure.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
Term
| Most lawsuits based on libel arise from: |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| The legal definition for "negligence" is: |
|
Definition
| Failure to exercise reasonable care |
|
|
Term
Which of the following is a factor in determining whether negligence occurred in libel cases?
|
|
|
Definition
| Reliance on information few would find trustworthy. |
|
|
Term
Complete this sentence accurately: When a private plaintiff sues for libel, defense based on "truth" requires:
|
|
|
Definition
| The defendant to prove the alleged libelous statement of fact is true. |
|
|
Term
Bob is a minor league baseball player and he needs money. The day after a game in which he played well, he reads a quote from the coach on the team website saying, in part, "Bob stole three bases." He had a brainstorm. Stealing is a crime. He called the coach and said, "Just letting you know I will be suing you for publishing as a statement of fact that I am a criminal." What's wrong with Bob's theory?
|
|
|
Definition
| Courts will not interpret clearly figurative speech in a literal way. |
|
|
