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No, she is not a public figure. Public figures are celebrities and public officials, not students who did well in an athletic competition. More importantly, however, calling them "ho's" is per se defamatory at common law (and still in many states), since it impinges upon her reputation for chastity. She has a very real case - and Imus would do well to take it very seriously. He did defame these girls with absolutely no justification.

He never mentioned her by name. Sports teams get called all kinds of things by writers, talking heads, and fans alike. The team may have some kind of complaint, but obviously they have better lawyers who see the futility of it all.

this is going nowhere.

Sports teams get called all kinds of things by writers, talking heads, and fans alike.

The team was not called "nappy-headed ho's." The girls on the team were. You might have a point if the team were called "the biggest bunch of sucks that ever did suck" or something - but there's no credible way you can interpret the slur "bunch of nappy-headed ho's" to refer to the team, not the girls.