In 1964, the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in New York Times v. Sullivan shaped libel law and bolstered freedom of press in the U.S. by raising the bar for public figures, requiring them to prove a journalist or news organization knowingly lied or acted with reckless disregard for the truth in order to win a defamation lawsuit. Over the course of nearly 60 years, the Sullivan decision has served as powerful protection for journalists and other speakers who deliver important information to the public.
The media landscape has changed dramatically in recent years thanks to technological advances, particularly social media, and political polarization. Viral news stories break out quickly, often without traditional fact-checking. Punditry, advocacy and opinion journalism are often indistinguishable from news reporting. And cries of “fake news” are everywhere.
In light of these new realities, two Supreme Court Justices, several lower courts and numerous political leaders have signaled a desire to relax the Sullivan standard, permitting more defamation suits to move forward. First Amendment advocates and journalism organizations fear that such a change would chill reporting on important and controversial stories. Given the importance of this issue for documentary filmmakers, we’ve assembled a panel of experienced media lawyers and filmmakers to discuss these legal developments and the impact on investigative reporting.