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[benjipwns]

Newest thread I could find on this, apologies if there's a newer one since I suck at searching:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...rolling-stone-over-retracted-u-va-rape-story/

Three Phi Kappa Psi fraternity brothers are suing Rolling Stone magazine in New York federal court for defamation, alleging that a now-retracted December 2014 article on rape at the University of Virginia identified them as taking part in a vicious gang rape.

The three U-Va., graduates, George Elias IV, Stephen Hadford and Ross Fowler, filed the lawsuit in New York federal court Wednesday against Rolling Stone and Sabrina Rubin Erdely, the journalist who wrote the 9,000-word account, which alleged a gang rape at the Phi Psi fraternity house during a party. The article was retracted in April after a Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism review concluded that it was deeply flawed.

“As young men who have dedicated their lives to obtaining the merits to attend UVA, maintaining good grades and obtaining undergraduate degrees, while also becoming involved in UVA activities, pledging a fraternity and finding lifelong brothers and friends, Plaintiffs have been embarrassed to admit that they are members of Phi Kappa Psi as a result of the article and its accusations,” according to the filing entered in U.S. District Court in New York.

The three fraternity brothers are requesting a trial by jury and seek more than $75,000 for “mental anguish and severe emotional distress,” caused by the article and its aftermath.

The lawsuit (read the entire document below) centers on Erdely’s reporting of a brutal sexual assault that had allegedly occurred inside the U-Va. Phi Psi house in Sept. 2012.

 

[Cyan]

Split for new news.

Do they have a case? I'm definitely not an expert at this stuff, but it seems like it'd be harder to prove defamation when it's a group being defamed rather than specific individuals.

 

[Johndoey]

Edit: I can't read apparently.
But still I suppose this suit could work, I mean I could imagine people catching shit from being part of the frat. But does defamation work for what they are arguing?

 

[benjipwns]

It's the three members (George Elias IV, Stephen Hadford and Ross Fowler) suing, not the fraternity.

 

[Cyan]

details in the article led members of the public to begin identifying them as being involved in the assault

I missed this bit. Still seems like a thin thread.

 

[Acorn]

I missed this bit. Still seems like a thin thread.

Did any outlets name them? Anything in the article that would be easily linked to them?

Only things i can think of or maybe they are just after a quick pay day since Rolling Stone probably doesn't want to drag this out.

 

[LQX]

$75,000 seem like such small amount to be going to court for a case like this.

 

[The Llama]

$75,000 seem like such small amount to be going to court for a case like this.

More than $75k. You need to sue for at least $75k to invoke diversity jurisdiction and get into federal court.

 

[Walpurgis]

Plaintiffs have been embarrassed to admit that they are members of Phi Kappa Psi as a result of the article and its accusations,” according to the filing entered in U.S. District Court in New York.

And the name wasn't embarrassing enough? Sounds like a freaking cult.

 

[Arkeband]

And the name wasn't embarrassing enough? Sounds like a freaking cult.

Ya totally.

Spoiler

or they're letters of the alphabet

 

[Onion_Relish]

Split for new news.

Do they have a case? I'm definitely not an expert at this stuff, but it seems like it'd be harder to prove defamation when it's a group being defamed rather than specific individuals.

Keep in mind that suing is not always about winning the case. By initiating the suit, RS will be forced to the table and will most likely negotiate a settlement handsome enough to pay off some or all of their student loan debt.

As for the legal merits, defamation is a relatively flexible concept that does not necessarily need to be targeted at an individual. If you are part of a clearly defined group, you can still sue for defamation if the necessary elements are there (havent read the article in ages so I can't remember if everything is there or not). Long story short. They definitely have a case, but its the kind of case that is so well publicized that the settlement should come pretty quickly.

 

[GoldenEye 007]

And the name wasn't embarrassing enough? Sounds like a freaking cult.

You're not making any sense.

Anyway, hope they win. Reckless reporting. And given how internet mobs can act based on news reports, probably a good message to send.

 

[injurai]

And the name wasn't embarrassing enough? Sounds like a freaking cult.

K

 

[Big Dog]

And the name wasn't embarrassing enough? Sounds like a freaking cult.

They are Greek letters of the alphabet. Which is what fraternities in America are named after.

 

[entremet]

Sounds like the EIC is resigning.

 

[braves01]

Split for new news.

Do they have a case? I'm definitely not an expert at this stuff, but it seems like it'd be harder to prove defamation when it's a group being defamed rather than specific individuals.

I think they should have a decent case. The article identifies a specific chapter of the group so it wouldn't take much work to deduce who it's referring to if the chapter is only 25 people or thereabouts (I have no idea how big frats usually are). Plus, they're not public figures or anything, the article accused them of gang rape, and it's a national publication with tons of subscribers and news stand sales. And most importantly, it's basically been determined to be false, so publishing it without any evidence seems at least negligent.

 

[Tinfoilhatsron]

And the name wasn't embarrassing enough? Sounds like a freaking cult.

American Frats are named with the Greek Alphabet so...

 

[Dude Abides]

They might have some trouble showing they were reasonably identifiable by a reader of the article.

 

[benicillin]

Defamation suits are usually quite difficult to prove in the US. I don't see this going anywhere.

EDIT: But I could see Rolling Stone settle pretty quickly.

 

[PaulExcellent]

When your name gets dragged across the mud because of poops and giggles, I feel like it's the principle that matters at that point.
Still, it seems hard to win a case like this.

oh well I mean nothing really happened right just some kids were/are treated like trash because of lies so whatevs

 

[Walpurgis]

They are Greek letters of the alphabet. Which is what fraternities in America are named after.

I didn't know that was normal. That's very strange...

 

[ivysaur12]

Defamation is very hard, but it's specific individuals within the fraternity, not the fraternity itself. That could be easier to prove, but still.

 

[Frog-fu]

If this part is true

The article was retracted in April after a Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism review concluded that it was deeply flawed.

then I hope they win the case. I'm sure there was no malicious intent behind the article, but these kind of things can ruin lives - and in the case of college kids - before they even start.

Defamation is a tough nut to crack though.

 

[The Technomancer]

Defamation is tricky. I think they're entitled to something, but I'm not sure what

 

[Joni]

I didn't know that was normal. That's very strange...

You used to study Greek and Latin at university, so the fraternities used Greek culture as theme for their set-up so many years ago. And as if the fraternities don't sound weird enough, there are also societies like Skull and Bones.

 

[Balphon]

Unless the fraternity was incredibly small they're going to have difficulty proving that they were identifiable as the subjects of the article.

May have better luck with the NIED claim in there, though I'm not sure what sort of damages they could get on those grounds alone.

 

[Skunkers]

I was watching a porn movie recently where Sierra Sin explains what a frat blanket is and says she was one for this fraternity (IIRC), even doing gangbangs and such with them, when she was still underage.

 

[old]

Don't know if it's been reported on gaf yet. But Will Dana the managing editor at Rolling Stone just announced his resignation for Aug 7.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/30/b...rolling-stones-managing-editor-to-depart.html

Should have lost his job a lot sooner.