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Does Libel have to be presented as true

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Menthol

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Nevada.

If I post somthing online and within the post awknowledge the post to be fictional, can I still end up loosing a libel case. Lets say I know a girl named Jane Doe. An on a forum I post.

"Jane Doe is a filthy whore with various sexually transmitied diseases.
This is a fictional post and only to be taken for entertainment value."

What if I make fun of a company, I seem to see on telivision alot of shows who make fun of buisnesses and individuals in ways which are obviously untrue. If I were to write that a hamster was the leader of a major corporation could I be sued for libel. Or would the absurdness of the statement be proof enough that it was intended as fiction.

Again the main question I have is:
Is it considered libel if the information is presented as fictional, and not to be taken as true in any way.
 
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Menthol said:
What is the name of your state? Nevada.

If I post somthing online and within the post awknowledge the post to be fictional, can I still end up loosing a libel case. Lets say I know a girl named Jane Doe. An on a forum I post.

"Jane Doe is a filthy whore with various sexually transmitied diseases.
This is a fictional post and only to be taken for entertainment value."

What if I make fun of a company, I seem to see on telivision alot of shows who make fun of buisnesses and individuals in ways which are obviously untrue. If I were to write that a hamster was the leader of a major corporation could I be sued for libel. Or would the absurdness of the statement be proof enough that it was intended as fiction.

Again the main question I have is:
Is it considered libel if the information is presented as fictional, and not to be taken as true in any way.
My response:

You're mixing apples and oranges. In the case of a company, they place themselves in the public eye by advertising. If you want to be humorous about the company, or if you want to state something about the company that you don't agree with, then you're on solid ground.

However, with a private person, that's not so. There's still a potential cause of action called "Invasion of Privacy," despite the truth of the matters you write about. Tort liability for invasion of privacy arises from four distinct kinds of activities: (a) intrusion into private matters; (b) public disclosure of private facts; (c) publicity placing a person in a false light; and (d) misappropriation of a person's name or likeness. To state a common law disclosure of private facts tort claim, a plaintiff must allege (1) a public disclosure of (2) private facts that is (3) offensive to a person of reasonable sensibilities.

If the person is identifiable, through name or situation, you're on the hook.

IAAL
 

Menthol

Junior Member
Ok thats what I figured about an Individual. When it comes to a company if I were to create a website of obvious lies about them, such as a fake photo of Hitler using one of their products. Assuming that I add a disclaimer to it that says that the information is untrue and to be taken as fictional could I still get into trouble?
 

Menthol

Junior Member
I saw a good example of what im talking about on tv. A member of the daily show pretty clearly stated that Donald Rumsfeld was gay. But your saying because he is a public figure that couldnt be considered slander?
 

LAWYER-001

Junior Member
Menthol said:
I saw a good example of what im talking about on tv. A member of the daily show pretty clearly stated that Donald Rumsfeld was gay. But your saying because he is a public figure that couldnt be considered slander?
My response:

You know, you're a bit exasperating. You keep coming up with "examples", and I'm not going to keep giving you answers to each example.

Read: New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) 376 U.S. 254

also

Read: BOSE CORP. v. CONSUMERS UNION OF U.S., INC., 466 U.S. 485 (1984)


IAAL
 
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Menthol said:
What is the name of your state? Nevada.

If I post somthing online and within the post awknowledge the post to be fictional, can I still end up loosing a libel case. Lets say I know a girl named Jane Doe. An on a forum I post.

"Jane Doe is a filthy whore with various sexually transmitied diseases.
This is a fictional post and only to be taken for entertainment value."

What if I make fun of a company, I seem to see on telivision alot of shows who make fun of buisnesses and individuals in ways which are obviously untrue. If I were to write that a hamster was the leader of a major corporation could I be sued for libel. Or would the absurdness of the statement be proof enough that it was intended as fiction.

Again the main question I have is:
Is it considered libel if the information is presented as fictional, and not to be taken as true in any way.

Menthol, let me see if I’ve got this right. Earlier today, you registered on this site seeking information re an obvious libel question. Magically, several hours later you are an authority, offering your *legal* opinion on a libel case? Fascinating!

I think you do have a libel case, but you need to make sure you have your evidence. Im not sure about the best way to extract verifiable information from the web, maybee someone else can help you with that. Obviously as soon as you start a lawsuit against someone for online libel they will remove that comment. But if they posted information about you that is untrue for nothing other then malicious reasons, that is almost the exact definition of libel as it has been interpreted by the courts.

https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?p=1405299#post1405299
 

AHA

Senior Member
Menthol said:
What is the name of your state? Nevada.

If I post somthing online and within the post awknowledge the post to be fictional, can I still end up loosing a libel case. Lets say I know a girl named Jane Doe. An on a forum I post.

"Jane Doe is a filthy whore with various sexually transmitied diseases.
This is a fictional post and only to be taken for entertainment value."

What if I make fun of a company, I seem to see on telivision alot of shows who make fun of buisnesses and individuals in ways which are obviously untrue. If I were to write that a hamster was the leader of a major corporation could I be sued for libel. Or would the absurdness of the statement be proof enough that it was intended as fiction.

Again the main question I have is:
Is it considered libel if the information is presented as fictional, and not to be taken as true in any way.
Ask yourself how "entertaining" you would find it if your name was plastered on the internet, saying that you are a whore with STDs.
 

weenor

Senior Member
Several states have laws against impuning the chastity of a woman whether true or not, and she doesn't have to prove actual damages. I would look that up.
 

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