Palin's defamation case is part of a conservative strategy to take on the media

Palin's defamation¹ case is part of a conservative strategy to take on the media

Transcript²

As Sarah Palin weighs an appeal of the jury verdict in her defamation case against The New York Times, lawyers say her lawsuit³ is part of a wave of litigation against media outlets⁴.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin just lost her defamation lawsuit against The New York Times. But her case is part of a larger strategy by some conservative figures to go after the media. NPR's David Folkenflik has the story.

DAVID FOLKENFLIK, BYLINE⁵: More than a decade ago, Sarah Palin emerged as a folk hero to the political right in large part for taking on the press.

(SOUNDBITE OF MONTAGE)

SARAH PALIN: For these lamestream media characters to get all wee-weed up about that.

And you're not getting the truth from the lamestream media.

But this BS coming from the lamestream media lately...

FOLKENFLIK: Palin has been taking on the press again in court. Thanks to a 57-year-old Supreme⁶ Court ruling, it's very tough for public figures, like politicians, to win libel cases. Last week, Palin lost not just once, but twice in court. First, the judge presiding over her defamation trial against the Times decided⁷ to toss out her claim. Palin seemed shocked on the courthouse steps, saying the judge had taken away the role the jury should play.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PALIN: So whatever happened in their kind of usurps⁸ the system that I believe we're used to and we respect and works.

FOLKENFLIK: The very next day, the jury, which was already deliberating, came back and found the Times was not liable for defamation. Yet, Palin is intending to appeal. And her case appears to be part of a larger strategy.

JAMEEL JAFFER: You know, we've seen this wave of litigation over the last five or 10 years.

FOLKENFLIK: Jameel Jaffer is a former ACLU lawyer who has argued cases before the Supreme Court. He now heads up the Knight⁹ First Amendment¹⁰ Institute at Columbia University.

JAFFER: You can describe that as weaponizing the defamation laws to chill public interest journalism¹¹. I think it's a real danger. I think it probably already has cast a real chill on certain kinds of journalism.

FOLKENFLIK: The cases hit the media outlets in the wallet. They're costly¹² to defend even if the news outlets win. And even the threat of litigation can intimidate¹³ news organizations from hard-hitting stories. The New York Times made a terrible mistake about Palin in an editorial. But the Times corrected its error about Palin inside a day. And no evidence surfaced showing the Times knew that what it published was false. Jaffer says news outlets should be held to account when they knowingly publish something that's wrong.

JAFFER: But we also need them to have a certain amount of breathing space to ensure that they can do the work that our democracy needs them to do.

FOLKENFLIK: A former Republican congressman¹⁴, Devin Nunes, has filed suit against 10 media companies. It's not clear who is paying for that litigation - or for Palin's, for that matter. There are loose ties connecting the lawyers involved in some of these cases. Years ago, Palin's attorneys helped to sue the news and gossip site Gawker into bankruptcy¹⁵ in a case financed by the right-wing Silicon¹⁶ Valley investor¹⁷ Peter Thiel. Now a new hero of the right has emerged to take on the media.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

KYLE RITTENHOUSE: I don't want to see anybody else have to deal with what I went through.

FOLKENFLIK: Last fall, a jury in Kenosha, Wis., found Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty on all counts related to killing¹⁸ two people and wounding a third when he opened fire during protests over a police shooting there. Some media commentators¹⁹ had called him a murderer and suggested he was a white supremacist. On Tuesday night, Rittenhouse unveiled a new group on Tucker Carlson's Fox News show. Then he made a pitch for money.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

RITTENHOUSE: Me and my team have decided to launch the Media Accountability Project as a tool to help fundraise and hold the media accountable for the lies they said, and deal with them in court.

FOLKENFLIK: First Amendment lawyers say there's the effort at a moonshot that conservative activists²⁰ are seeking a case to be heard by a newly reshaped Supreme Court that's less friendly to journalists. Maybe it's Palin's appeal, maybe it's another one. These activists don't just want to win a case - they want the protections for the press rewritten altogether.

David Folkenflik, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF JASISE'S "SPF")

1 defamation   

n.诽谤；中伤

参考例句：

• Character defamation can be either oral or written.人格诽谤既可以是口头的也可以是书面的。
• The company sued for defamation.这个公司因受到诽谤而提起诉讼。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。

4 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 usurps   

篡夺，霸占( usurp的第三人称单数 )； 盗用； 篡夺，篡权

参考例句：

• The domestic and foreign each big bank also allin abundance usurps the credit card market. 国内外的各大银行也都纷纷强占信用卡市场。

9 knight   

n.骑士，武士；爵士

参考例句：

• He was made an honourary knight.他被授予荣誉爵士称号。
• A knight rode on his richly caparisoned steed.一个骑士骑在装饰华丽的马上。

10 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

11 journalism   

n.新闻工作，报业

参考例句：

• He's a teacher but he does some journalism on the side.他是教师，可还兼职做一些新闻工作。
• He had an aptitude for journalism.他有从事新闻工作的才能。

12 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

13 intimidate   

vt.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• You think you can intimidate people into doing what you want?你以为你可以威胁别人做任何事？
• The first strike capacity is intended mainly to intimidate adversary.第一次攻击的武力主要是用来吓阻敌方的。

14 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

15 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

16 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

17 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

18 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

19 commentators   

n.评论员( commentator的名词复数 )；时事评论员；注释者；实况广播员

参考例句：

• Sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 体育解说员翻来覆去说着同样的词语，真叫人腻烦。
• Television sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 电视体育解说员说来说去就是那么几句话，令人厌烦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》