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Jane Simpson Libel Summary

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Jane Simpson is likely to win a judgement against the reporter as the odds are often in the plaintiff’s favor versus the defense in libel cases. The first element of the plaintiff’s libel case is an assertion or statement of fact – not an opinion. The defense’s blog note about Simpson shooting players with illegal steroids is a statement of fact. Since the reporter’s statement was published through mass media, or the campus blog, it is considered libelous through the second element, publication. The third element of the libel case, identification, is easily met because the defense uses the name Jane Simpson and identifies her by the title of a women’s basketball training staffer. The fourth element of a plaintiff’s libel case is the defamatory content itself, or libel. Defamation can range from words that are false or injurious to statements that cause scorn or ridicule. If the Simpson faces contempt, hatred or loses confidence from others because of the reporter’s blog, it is defamatory. The defamation would be categorized under libel per se, involving accusations of criminal activity, unethical conduct, unprofessional behavior, immoral actions or malpractice. Implying that Simpson gave the basketball players illegal drugs meets these requirements. It also meets the first rule-overall context; when you look at the reporter’s statement …show more content…

Served to protect a citizen’s reputation, libel law lets any living person who believes their reputation was damaged by written word file a libel case to rebuild their reputation and gain money for compensation. The initial failures of the story lie in reporter’s negligence in collecting and verifying information regarding the rumor following Jane Simpson. Principal tenets of the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics include seeking truth, verifying information before publishing, avoiding furtive reporting if possible, and not

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