The copy desk has the most influence over the public’s perception of a newspaper, and it’s this impression that strongly influences juries in libel cases, a media lawyer told copy editors at a recent ACES session.

Frequent typos and other mistakes lead the public – and hence, juries – not to trust even the factual parts of newspapers, which can lead to verdicts favoring libel plaintiffs, said Kelli L. Sager at the Nov. 9 meeting of the Southern California chapter, held at the Los Angeles Times Orange County edition.

“If you have a newspaper with a lot of errors in it, the perception readers get is that this is a newspaper that's not careful,” said Sager, a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine in Los Angeles. “Copy desks really are the last line of defense” against defamation suits. “Even one word in a headline can cause a lawsuit, even if everything in the story is accurate.”

Carelessness in headlines is one factor that can lead to “implied libel,” the biggest trend in defamation law, Sager told the copy editors. In such lawsuits, allegations of libel are based on a story’s overall tone rather than on its explicit elements.

“You can get sued not only for what the paper says directly, but for what is implied. ... It doesn't matter if you very carefully said it and have all the right words in there, if you imply something false, you can get sued and you can lose,” she said.

The prime example is Richard Jewell, the security guard who was an Olympics bombing suspect in the summer of 1996. He sued several news organizations, alleging that their coverage created the impression that he had planted the bomb. He has received five big settlements.

At a trial for implied libel, plaintiffs will make an issue of anything that went into the story’s production, including the story slug and internal messages and e-mails between the copy and city desks, Sager said. If a story about an arrest is slugged “Guilty,” for example, the plaintiff’s lawyer will use that to try to convince the jury that the paper was prejudiced against the arrestee.

“Juries want to see we’ve been fair,” she said. “Don't say anything in an e-mail that you wouldn’t want to see enlarged in a courtroom [exhibit]. There are so many occasions in the copy editing process that can either save
you from a lawsuit or cause a lawsuit.”

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Brad Bonhall is an assistant copy chief at the Los Angeles Times. 
 

What to Look For

Subjecting stories to a mental prepublication checklist can help copy desks in their role as the last line of defense against lawsuits, media lawyer Kelli L. Sager said.

Are all IDs correct? 
Be careful with information presented about not only
the newsmaker but also the peripheral people in the story.

Is the story consistent with what the paper has run before? 
Does it take into account any correction made to any previous story?

Watch for private information about a person that could be misleading.
If using stock photos, watch the content: Could someone in the photo sue, contending the photo implies he’s a lawbreaker?

Does the story jibe with its documentary support, such as a police report
or court affidavit?

Would a jury perceive the story as fair? 
Does it present both sides of a dispute, even if one side isn’t quoted?