Posted on 07/14/2013 5:51:14 AM PDT by Gorilla44
George Zimmerman's not guilty verdict adds a new wrinkle to a separate legal case in the Florida courts: His defamation suit against NBC.
In December, Zimmerman sued NBC, reporter Ron Allen and two other news personnel on claims that the network's edits of his 911 call to police were manipulated to make it sound like he was a racist. The Florida judge in Zimmerman's case, Debra Nelson, put the defamation case on hold pending the result of the criminal trial.
Jody Armour, professor at USC's Gould School of Law, said that although it is "possible" that Zimmerman's claim against the network will be strengthened, it "may not have a big impact because he has to prove actual malice if he is trying to prove defamation."
He believes that Zimmerman "is almost certainly going to fall into the classification" of a public figure, raising the bar for plaintiffs, in that they have to prove knowledge that they knew that the information was false or had reckless disregard for the truth. (clip) In media defamation cases, plaintiffs have to show that the facts about them were false, that the news story was about them and caused harm and, in the case of public figures, that there was malice, or that the news outlet knew it was false and went ahead and published it anyway. Zimmerman was not a public figure before the shooting of Trayvon Martin last year, and an issue in his litigation may very well be the extent to which he falls into the category of a "limited purpose" public figure. Courts have weighed the extent to which a person voluntarily becomes part of public debate.
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
All he have to show is the unedited and then the edit. Its very clear its done to make him look racist, thats malice
I'm sure a competent lawyer will consider all of that. But at the end of the day I don't see a trial but instead a quiet settlement.
My point exactly. Zimmerman was not a public figure at the time NBC aired that.
I guess it depends on the venue of the civil case. If he moved it here CNN would settle today.
Since the broadcast was national why can’t he take it to any venue that suits him?
I would imagine his bodyguard bill will be pretty steep.
Awesome!!!
Having prevailed in a multi-year, multi-million dollar settlement of a high profile civil suit against a public corporation, I would relish having the basis for a complaint against NBC like Zimmerman’s. It’s all about tireless identification of insiders and former insiders for informal interrogation to gain insights for effective discovery - discovery from which NBC will not be able to recover.
Even discovery of NBC brass suppressing/destroying evidence is enormously valuable and points to criminality. LinkedIn is a great tool for finding someone that might talk.
Sadly, GZ is not Richard Jewell. GZ’s fighting the White House. I’m not holding out any hope.
You notice still the picture of the 12 year old. A smiling Zimmerman to taunt the intended target, and a crying fat black woman.
Is it up to the Media to give their own verdict after the official one has come out?
The NY Post is deliberately convicting Zimmerman after he has been found innocent. They are instigating black animosity.
That is HUGE!!! What an admission. Forced to edit? A compelling Pavlovian need to make the news fit a template? Pack mentality or something more sinister? I think it is worth hunting up that "legal response" to see exactly how it was said. I find the idea of there being some sort of lock-step self-correcting mechanism in the MSM fascinating. And disgusting.
“discovery from which NBC will not be able to recover.”
How sweet would that be!
I wonder if he could sue the NAACP for defamation of character, etc.?
The General also sued the documentary's narrator, investigative reporter Mike Wallace, the producer and others.
Westmoreland's claims were governed by the landmark New York Times Co. vs. Sullivan decision which held that in order to recover for defamation, a "public figure" like Westmoreland must prove that the defendant made the statements in question with "actual malice".
The trial ended in February 1985 when the case was settled out of court just before it would have gone to the jury.
However, under the settlement agreement, Westmoreland received no money, there were no CBS retractions or apologies and both sides paid their own legal fees.
It was generally understood that the "malice" clause was an insurmountable mountain for Westmoreland to climb....he had to back off.....and he never was able to claim "victory" because the settlement was all in favor of CBS.
Leni
Yeah, and the Post is supposed to be a conservative rag.
In the future NBC News, the poverty pimps and race baiters will be seen with all the charm of Bull Conner, Robert Byrd, and George Wallace in the school house door.
NBC was shameful... their ‘mistake’ was intentional - they’re the haters of our time - just like Bull Conner was a hater of his time.
If Zimmerman winds up owning NBC it’ll be justice done...
THERE WILL BE NO LAWSUITS AGAINST THE MEDIA.””
IMO, GZ has 2 very strong lawsuits against NBC & CNN.
He will need the money to live on for the rest of his life—he will have a hard time hiding & working at the same time.
“If Zimmerman winds up owning NBC it’ll be justice done...”
ZNBC has a nice ring to it.
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