Comm Law Ch. 4 Vocab

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what others think of a person or entity

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reputation

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injury to reputation

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defamation

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printed or, in some states, broadcast defamation

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libel

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spoken defamation. However, in most states, defamation spoken on broadcast stations or in motion pictures is considered libel

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slander

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a publication of the American Law Institute that attempts to provide a comprehensive statement of the law of torts

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Restatement of Torts

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the responsibility imposed on one side in a legal conflict to prove its version of the facts

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burden of proof

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to win damages in a libel suit, a plaintiff must establish certain claims to the satisfaction of a jury. This obligation is called the plaintiff's "burden of proof." To sue successfully for libel, most plaintiffs must prove the following:


___--that there was no defamatory language

___--that the defamation was about the plaintiff

___--that the defamation was disseminated

___--that the defamation was published as a result of negligence or recklessness

___--that the statement was false, a burden only for persons suing for defamation related to matters of public concern

___--such as a loss to reputation, emotional distress, or the loss of business revenues

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defamation

identification

publication

fault

falsity

personal harm

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(see trade libel) Intentionally defaming product quality causing the product manufacturer to lose money

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product disparagement

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hatred, ill will, spite

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common-law malice

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(New York Times) In libel, publication with the knowledge of the falsity of a story or with reckless disregard for the truth. The U.S. Supreme Court has said that both public officials and public figures must prove New York Times actual malice in order to win libel suits

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actual malice

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a rule stating that material must be defined as innocent rather than defamatory if an ___ is possible

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innocent construction rule

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implied defamation

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innuendo

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in communications, a regulated monopoly, guaranteed profits by the government, that is expected to provide message delivery service to anyone for a fee, without interfering in the content of the message

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common carrier

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frequently used to mean the media error that the plaintiff must prove to win a libel suit. Plaintiffs who are judged to be public officials or public figures must prove New York Times actual malice. Individual states can determine the level of fault that must be proven by other plaintiffs, but most states have chosen negligence

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fault

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not acting as a reasonable person would. In some states, a journalist not acting as a reasonable journalist would

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negligence

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defaming the government

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seditious libel

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the U.S. Supreme Court has said that people become public figures for the purpose of libel suits only if they 1) possess widespread fame or notoriety or 2) have injected themselves into the debate of a controversial public issue for the purpose of affecting the outcome of that controversy

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public figure

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a libel plaintiff who is not a public figure or public official. In most states, a private figure libel plaintiff need prove only that the defendant acted negligently

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private figure

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money awarded in a libel suit to a plaintiff who can demonstrate evidence of harm to reputation. ___ can include evidence of emotional distress as well as proof of monetary loss

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actual damages

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money damages compensating for the loss of reputation that are awarded only on proof of out-of-pocket monetary loss

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special damages

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money damages awarded to punish a defendant rather than to compensate a plaintiff for loss of money or reputation

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punitive damages

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a ruling by a judge that there is no dispute of material fact between the two parties in a case, and that one party should win the case as a matter of law. A ___ precludes the need for a trial

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summary judgement

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time limits established by statute during which lawsuits may be filed or criminal charges brought

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statute of limitations

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a libel defense protecting false and defamatory statements made by certain individuals, such as government officials acting in their official capacities, or in certain documents, such as those filed with courts

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absolute privilege

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a journalist's libel defense based on another's absolute privilege. A ___ may be lost if the story is not fair and accurate or if the defamatory statements are not accurately attributed

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qualified privilege

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a libel defense in a few jurisdictions. ___ may be found if the defamatory charges are newsworthy and related to a public controversy, made by a responsible person or organization, about a public official or public figure, and accurately and neutrally reported, and if the story includes opposing views

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neutral reportage

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libel suits filed against citizen activists to stop political expression

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SLAPP suits (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation)