WaPo Settles $250 Million Lawsuit With Covington Teen Nick Sandmann

Discussion in 'Politics' started by Banjo, Jul 24, 2020.

  1. Or at least he plays one on ET.
     
    #41     Jul 27, 2020
  2. Dr. Love

    Dr. Love

    Go ahead Nick. Take all those disgusting POS leftist rags for everything they got.

    Nothing better than the sweet pounding of justice.
     
    #42     Jul 27, 2020
    chisel and smallfil like this.
  3. gwb-trading

    gwb-trading

    #43     Jul 27, 2020
  4. Tsing Tao

    Tsing Tao

    I don't even remember what the kid was suing about and am too lazy to go find it.
     
    #44     Jul 27, 2020

  5. I would bet it is in the 6 figures and no more.

    Anyone who knows the law knows you can sue for any amount you want in the filing. he could have sued for $1 billion or $30 trillion. it is irrelevant as the actual amounts are decided in trial by a judge or jury with no relation to what was filed. So if anyone thinks that Washington Post is being sued for $250 million and that is what is at stake is silly.

    The teenager claims false and misleading coverage of a viral confrontation with a Native American elder that left viewers with the impression that the teenager and his pals were being racist provocateurs.

    Kid certainly has a case but media has a lot of lattitude if they believe what they are reporting is true (media was not owner of the video/pic) based on info at the time and then puts out info to show previous story was wrong and tries to correct it. If there is negligence in how they reported the story it is up to a jury to decide what damages occurred from it but it rarely results in major award.

    Playing devil's advocate here, the video was not the property of the media, other people there took pictures and videos and the newspapers and cable news ran with the story. Although not with as much much vigor, they showed the full videos and showed the kid did not do what they claimed. This is the shitty media version of a retraction.

    The kid cannot truly claim any serious damages from the news story and the media can rely on saying they were shown limited or edited video or they eventually played the full video blah blah blah.....

    Any good lawyer could use numerous historical examples of media running with a story and then later showing more detail to clarify and if the kid was simply subjected to attacks online or in the media for a period of time, the "damages" was not some major huge lawsuit such as libel or slander. he can claim he was attacked and harrassed online for weeks by asshats but sorry...it is not worth millions in a lawsuit.

    Therefore I could see the news outlet saying it would cost them $200k to $300k for a full trial which would end with their victory or a small judgement and it would be easier to pay it upfront in a settlement.

    For those of you who think the kid was entitled to millions are really crazy. This was not slander or libel like National Enquirer was subject to. Media interpreted a video wrongly and created a wrong narrative but the media also then covered its ass by playing the entire video and reported what really happened.

    As shitty as it was, it is not worth milions and millions.....not about your opinion but the reality of tort law here and the media.

    The media fucked up but seriously...they been doing this shit for decades with bias in their stories......now people are upset and think they should pay??
     
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2020
    #45     Jul 27, 2020
  6. https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/20/us/covington-kentucky-student-statement/index.html

    CNN published the kids statement and many news sources revised their stories.

    "Many media outlets revised their coverage in the wake of these new revelations, and many pundits apologized for the rush to judgment. Frustratingly, others have doubled down, and some have remained doggedly insistent that "we're never going to know exactly what happened that day," even though it's abundantly clear already."

    Bottom line what the media did was wrong initially and was a result of the rampant bias that exists there already. it still continues daily if you watch FOX and CNN daily.

    lawsuits like this often fail because there are too many defenses and lots of leeway given to press.

    I am glad the kid got a settlement to set some guidelines in the futures but I guarantee it was 6 figures and about wha thte paper would have spent on legal to defend themselves.

    the media is not going to let this kid get rich suing 16 media outlets. So the CNN bending to the lawsuit means the others will be more resolved to fight back againt it with proof of clarifications and the paper is not responsible for how social media responds after the fact.
     
    #46     Jul 27, 2020
  7. Wallet

    Wallet

    If you purposely misrepresent the facts to further a false narrative for ratings or worse some type of political retribution and in doing so, harm an individual - should you not be held accountable and liable?

    Imo, these media companies should be made an example to stop this type of reporting in the future.
     
    #47     Jul 27, 2020

  8. Yes but shit was happening for years..

    remember the birther saga FOX pushed and never retracted...
    How many conspiraciy stories are on Brietbart and repeated..... [crickets]...

    I look forward to those media outlets issuing apologies and paying out millions..

    Until then, the kid is not going to get millions suing these outlets and I am pretty sure what he got was low 6 figures. If he thinks he can go after 12 other media outlets and get the same he is mistaken. The law is not there to make him rich.
     
    #48     Jul 27, 2020
  9. #49     Jul 27, 2020
  10. This is the same kinda crap that goes on in the insurance industry. It's simply cheaper and easier to settle it than the attorney's would cost to fight it and win. Any attorney's gonna take this case and hope for just that and a 40% cut just like the ambulance chasers which we all pay for.

    I'm sooo sorry Mr. Sandmann's sterling reputation carefully cultivated over years of being a child and teenager in Kentucky has been so horribly besmirched. I'm sure he was destined to be a real pillar of society prior to that day.
     
    #50     Jul 27, 2020