Libel Claims by The Satanic Temple Against Newsweek Over Sexual Abuse Allegations …
A short excerpt from today’s long decision by Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil (S.D.N.Y.) in The Satanic Temple, Inc. v. Newsweek Magazine LLC:
The Satanic Temple, Inc. … [sued] Newsweek Magazine LLC … [for alleged defamation] in the article titled “Orgies, Harassment, Fraud: Satanic Temple Rocked by Accusations, Lawsuit” published by Newsweek. After this Court’s [earlier] Opinion and Order on Defendant’s motion to dismiss, only one statement, “Accounts of sexual abuse being covered up in ways that were more than anecdotal” (the “Article Statement”), remains at issue….
The court grants Newsweek summary judgment as to that last statement. The court concludes that there’s a material factual dispute as to what the statement would mean to a reasonable reader (and whether it’s false):
The relevant portion of the Article, with the Article Statement emphasized here (but not in the Article), reads:
He hadn’t been involved long when he came to feel that TST ‘appeared to be an inept, rudderless organization that had accidentally risen to prominence through something of a disingenuous prank,’ referring to the 2013 filming event in Florida.
He soon left the group, then was leaked material about ‘leaders posing happily with major alt-right media figures,’ he wrote. ‘Accounts of sexual abuse being covered up in ways that were more than anecdotal. Dozens of people kicked out for asking for financial records from this alleged-non-profit organization.’
In Newsweek’s motion, it argues that the Article Statement is substantially true and therefore cannot be defamatory because the most straight forward interpretation of the Article Statement merely asserts that Jinx Strange, or other members of The Satanic Temple, were no longer involved with The Satanic Temple in part because they “heard about accounts of sexual abuse being covered up.” The Satanic Temple argues that the Article Statement does not merely convey that Strange, or other members, were aware of these allegations. Instead, The Satanic Temple asserts that the Article Statement “falsely implies the existence of ‘leaked material’ which shows sexual abuse and cover-up.” …
[I]n reviewing each [side’s motion for summary judgment] and drawing all reasonable inferences in favor of the non-moving party, the Court concludes that the Article Statement is reasonably susceptible to multiple meanings, some of which are non-defamatory, and thus the Court cannot conclude as a matter of law that the Article Statement is false and defamatory or true and not defamatory. See Electra v. 59 Murray Enterprises, Inc. (2d Cir. 2021) (rejecting appellants argument tha
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