![]() ![]() The First Amendment should not protect Gawker's posting of the sex video and should not grant the media absolute editorial independence. Thus far, the Supreme Court has been consistent in not letting the First Amendment restrict liability for invasion of privacy when speech is not of legitimate public concern.Ģ. 514 (2001), the Supreme Court held that “privacy concerns give way when balanced against the interest in publishing matters of public importance.” Our cases have carefully eschewed reaching this ultimate question.” In Bartnicki v. 524 (1989), the Court explicitly rejected the “invitation to hold broadly that truthful publication may never be punished consistent with the First Amendment. ![]() Supreme Court has curtailed privacy tort liability when speech is of legitimate public concern and has consistently refused to restrict liability when speech is not of legitimate public concern. The First Amendment doesn’t protect speech out of a desire to satisfy morbid curiosity or prurient interest." As I wrote in the New York Times Room for Debate: "A sex video doesn’t contribute to public debate or to the development of ideas. But in most instances, a sex video is not of legitimate public concern. Supreme Court has held that the First Amendment provides the strongest protection when speech is of legitimate public concern. But that's not the situation with the Hulk Hogan case. Indeed, the First Amendment will bar tort liability that infringes upon the right to free speech. Several commentators are suggesting that the First Amendment will protect Gawker. The First Amendment right to free speech does not protect Gawker's posting of the sex video. ![]() There are several points about this case to discuss: 1. Under one of the main privacy torts - public disclosure of private facts - one can be liable if one widely and publicly discloses private information about another that would be highly offensive to a reasonable person and not of legitimate concern to the public. Hulk Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, brought a lawsuit for invasion of privacy and other torts. In a high-profile privacy lawsuit, former pro-wrestler Hulk Hogan won a $115 million jury verdict against Gawker for posting his sex video without his consent. ![]()
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