Glenn Beck’s audacious defense against Boston Marathon bombings defamation suit

Broadcaster Glenn Beck, formerly of Fox News, was nonetheless suspicious of Alharbi. He thought the Obama administration was hiding Alharbi’s involvement. So three weeks later, Beck urged the government to release its information on Alharbi or else Beck would “expose” him.

“While the media continues to look at what the causes were [behind] these two guys, there are, at this hour, three people involved,” Beck said, alleging the U.S. government had “tagged” Alharbi as a “proven terrorist.” Over several broadcasts, Beck called Alharbi the “money man” behind the Boston bombings. “You know who the Saudi is?” Beck asked. “He’s the money man. He’s the guy who paid for it.”

What Beck said about Alharbi was untrue. Alharbi sued Beck for defamation in federal court in late March. And now, in a batch of little-noticed motions, Beck has lashed back, saying Alharbi is trying to “punish” and impede Beck’s First Amendment rights. Beck argues the bombings made Alharbi a “limited purpose” and “involuntary” public figure who must prove not just that Beck made false accusations, but that Beck did it with “actual malice.”

Beck sticks to his guns that the man suing him for defamation had acted “suspiciously.”

Source: www.washingtonpost.com

This appears to the the classic, “I talked about you and made you a public figure, and now that you are a public figure, you have to show what I said about you was said with malice.” I’ll monitor this one and let you know how it is decided.

See on Scoop.itDefamation Law

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Aaron Morris
Morris & Stone, LLP
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