Deck 5: Libel: Defenses and Privileges

Question 1

The purpose of retraction statutes is to

A)mitigate the damages a libel defendant may be required to pay
B)reduce any chilling effect on the issuance of retractions when mistakes are made by the media
C)discourage the issuance of retractions by leveling additional damages against guilty libel defendants that make retractions
D)both A and B

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which of the following is not a libel defense?

A)opinion
B)rhetorical hyperbole
C)fair comment and criticism
D)actual malice
E)all the above are libel defenses

Answer 2

D

Question 3

What choice below best describes the response of the nation's courts to the neutral reportage libel defense?

A)Nearly all courts have embraced it
B)About half of the courts accept it
C)Most courts have not adopted it
D)No court has yet accepted it

Answer 3

C

Question 4

When does the neutral reportage defense apply?

A)When a story is newsworthy and related to a public controversy
B)When an accusation is made by a responsible person or group
C)When the story is accurate,contains other views,and is reported in a neutral way
D)All of the above

Question 5

Who was "Evans" in Ollman v.Evans?

A)a newspaper columnist
B)a newspaper reporter
C)a college professor
D)a political activist

Question 6

Why did the 9th Circuit court provide TheDirty.com Section 230 immunity?

A)Because the website owner's additional comments did not materially contribute to the defamatory content of the third-party (user)statements
B)Because the speech in question was anonymous
C)Because there is no statute of limitations in these cases
D)All of the above

Question 7

According to the libel-proof plaintiff doctrine,

A)certain public officials are in such important positions that the media are forbidden from libeling them
B)certain public officials are in such important positions that they cannot sue the media for libel
C)people with already bad reputations have an easier time winning libel lawsuits
D)some people have reputations so bad that even false and defamatory claims cannot harm their reputations any further

Question 8

Which of the following is not one of the requirements of the fair report/qualified privilege?

A)The information must be obtained from a record,proceeding,or individual recognized as "official"
B)The news report must be concerning a matter of public controversy
C)The news report must fairly and accurately reflect what is in the public record or what was said during the official proceeding
D)The source of the statement should be clearly noted in the news report

Question 9

When does Section 230 immunity apply to an ISP or website?

A)When the ISP/website is a content creator
B)When the ISP/website interacts directly with the content
C)When the ISP/website corrects,edits,adds,or removes content,as long as they don't substantially alter the meaning of the content
D)All of the above

Question 10

The idea that material cannot be libelous when it is unbelievable relates to which libel defense?

A)wire service
B)fair comment and criticism
C)neutral reportage
D)rhetorical hyperbole

Question 11

In defending a lawsuit based on statements of opinion,a defendant may win the case by arguing that the statements are

A)rhetorical hyperbole
B)protected by the First Amendment
C)fair comment and criticism
D)all of the above

Question 12

Which of the following is not among the criteria for the successful application of the neutral reportage libel defense?

A)The charges are made by a responsible and prominent source
B)The charges are true
C)The charges are reported accurately
D)The charges focus on a public official or public figure

Question 13

Which of the following is not among the criteria for the successful application of the "wire service defense"?

A)The information was from a reputable news gathering agency
B)The republisher did not know the story was false
C)There was nothing to reasonably alert the defendant of possible falsity
D)The information was republished without any change

Question 14

Which libel defense is specifically meant to protect reviews of products and services that are presented for public consumption?

A)fair report/qualified privilege
B)fair comment and criticism
C)neutral reportage
D)rhetorical hyperbole

Question 15

The Milkovich v.Lorain Journal decision teaches that

A)newspaper columns and columnists are immune from successful libel claims
B)in spite of being forums for opinion,newspaper columns and columnists may be targets of successful libel claims
C)letters to the editor are protected by the opinion defense
D)neutral reportage is limited in its scope

Question 16

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act

A)protects Internet service providers (ISPs)from libel when others create potentially libelous content,although the protection is not absolute
B)does not apply to libel law
C)protects anyone who posts libelous content online
D)provides absolute protection for Internet service providers (ISPs)from libel when others create potentially libelous content

Question 17

According to the single-publication rule,

A)subsequent sales or reissues of publications are not considered to be new publications,and therefore,are not susceptible to libel claims
B)subsequent sales or reissues of publications are considered to be new publications,and therefore,are susceptible to libel claims
C)the rule does not apply to Internet publications
D)the rule applies only to daily publications such as daily newspapers

Question 18

What is a libel-proof plaintiff?

A)Someone whose reputation cannot be lowered beyond its current level
B)Someone whose reputation can be harmed only by false statements
C)A private person
D)A public person

Question 19

What is the fair report privilege?

A)A privilege claimed by journalists
B)A privilege that can only be claimed when information comes from official records
C)A privilege that can only be applied when the reporting fairly and accurately reflects the content of an official record
D)All of the above

Question 20

How long from the initial date of publication of an alleged libel does a potential plaintiff have to file a libel suit?

A)1 year
B)2 years
C)3 years
D)it depends on the state

Question 21

A libel plaintiff has to prove only one element of his or her case in order to succeed,whereas a libel defendant is required to prove every possible defense.

Question 22

The opinion defense is considered the constitutional equivalent of fair comment and criticism.

Question 23

Explain the concept of innocent construction.

Question 24

Rhetorical hyperbole is a libel defense.

Question 25

The single publication rule limits libel victims to only one cause of action even with multiple publications of the libel,which is common in the mass media and on websites.

Question 26

The libel defenses of fair comment and criticism and opinion are the same.

Question 27

What is the name given to the libel defense that asserts the reputation of the person suing is already so bad that a false report about him/her cannot damage it any further?

Question 28

Over time,the neutral reportage has become one of the most-used libel defenses because of its acceptance by courts nationwide.

Question 29

A newspaper runs a column on the editorial page once a week written by Julie James.The column is entitled "My Opinion." One week,James writes a column about animals,such as cats and dogs,being stolen from people's yards and being sold to medical and cosmetic testing laboratories.The column includes information from police reports and statements from some people whose animals were stolen.The columnist makes clear that she thinks stealing animals for experimental purposes is a terrible thing to do.Then the column says,"Sam Jones,a deputy sheriff in Adams County,has received some of these animals and sold them to George Smith.Smith,in turn,sold them to the testing labs.While it is unclear whether Jones knew the animals were stolen,he knew that he was being a rotten and repulsive person,and dealing with people who-like himself-are among the lowest of the low." Jones brings suit for libel based on the words "rotten," "repulsive," and "lowest of the low." Assuming Jones can prove all the elements of the plaintiff's case,what is the newspaper's (and columnist's)one best defense? Will it be a successful defense? Why or why not?

Question 30

Antonin Scalia,now a U.S.Supreme Court justice,wrote the majority opinion for the

Question 31

The only requirement in using the fair report privilege as a libel defense is that the report be fair.

Question 32

Under the First Amendment,there is no such thing as a false idea.

Question 33

The fair report privilege covers officials and proceedings in the executive,judicial,and legislative branches of state,local,and federal governments and,often,private individuals communicating with the government.

Question 34

In the United States,anyone considering filing a libel claim has one year from the date the material was published to file.

Question 35

The criteria for judging whether a statement was an expression of opinion was established by the U.S.Supreme Court in the Ollman case.

Question 36

The fair report privilege is a qualified privilege.

Question 37

Letters to the editor are usually viewed as expressions of opinion and therefore unlikely to be the target of successful libel claims.

Question 38

List all the elements of the Ollman v.Evans test for opinion.

Question 39

Courts have determined that under Section 230 gossip websites like TheDirty.com are protected the same as Internet service providers (ISPs).

Question 40

Given a choice between using the fair comment defense or the opinion defense,a libel defendant should use the opinion defense because it is based on the First Amendment.

Question 41

What is the neutral reportage defense? Does it apply in all states?