Curtis Publishing Company v. Wally Butts
The Facts: In 1967 the newspaper Saturday Evening Post published an article claiming that Wally Butts, the head football coach for University of Georgia, and Bear Bryant, Alabama’s head coach, had conspired to a major game. Wally Butts sued for libel and won. After New York Times v. Sullivan was decided, Curtis Publishing requested a new trial.
The Issue: Can the public official clause in the First Amendment, that protected others under New York Times v. Sullivan, be extended to public figures?
The Rule: Ruled 5 – 4 for Wally Butts
The Holding: A public figure may collect damages if they can prove there was a lack of reasonable credibility in the published work.
The Rationale: The court did not believe that Curtis Publishing Company met the journalistic standards for backing their claims and were reckless in their story.
The disposition: The Supreme Court upheld the previous decision, but lessened the 3 million dollar pay-out to $460 thousand dollars.
I thought this case brought up an interesting discussion in class, on what makes a public figure a public figure and how does that affect lawsuits and libel cases. I feel like the discussion of this topic is very complex as there are so many loopholes to the law, for example, does knowing someone personally change if they are considered a public figure, as they are not to you??
I also found it interesting how all the groups had the same newspaper in their presentations as a news source that is leaning their way.