Re: The Hulk Hogan trial that could redefine freedom of expr
Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2016 6:52 am
Ex-Gawker Editor Backs Off Testimony in Hulk Hogan Case
By LES NEUHAUS
MARCH 14, 2016
NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT
Albert J. Daulerio, former editor in chief of Gawker Media. Credit Pool photo by Steve Nesius
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The former editor in chief of the website Gawker testified on Monday that he was not being sincere when he said in a videotaped deposition that children over the age of 4 were fair game for sex tapes to be published online.
The former editor, Albert J. Daulerio, sought to clarify his comments under questioning from Gawker’s lawyer, Michael Sullivan. The deposition was played last Wednesday, in a court where a $100 million suit brought by the former wrestler Hulk Hogan, claiming invasion of privacy, is being tried.
In that testimony, Mr. Daulerio was asked by the plaintiff’s lawyer if he could imagine a situation in which a celebrity sex tape would not be newsworthy.
“If they were a child,” Mr. Daulerio replied.
“Under what age?” the lawyer asked.
“Four.”
Gawker issued a statement later that day saying Mr. Daulerio was being flippant. On Monday, he told Gawker’s lawyer that he was not being serious when he made the comments.
In cross-examination, the legal team for Hulk Hogan, whose legal name is Terry G. Bollea, attacked Mr. Daulerio for his seeming insensitivity.
“You think that’s a funny topic to joke about?” asked Shane Vogt, one of the lawyers for the former wrestler.
“No, I don’t,” Mr. Daulerio replied.
A few exchanges later, Mr. Vogt asked Mr. Daulerio, “You were joking about child pornography, were you not?”
Mr. Daulerio deflected the question, saying that he was being sarcastic, but that he regretted the response in the video deposition.
But Mr. Vogt was dogged, showing both Mr. Daulerio’s video deposition on the subject and then introducing a piece of evidence with Mr. Daulerio’s signature, confirming his testimony in the videotaped deposition.
Mr. Vogt persisted, asking if he hadn’t changed his testimony.
Mr. Daulerio said he had not, though he could have.
Nick Denton, left, founder of Gawker, and a former editor, Albert J. Daulerio, are defendants in the Hulk Hogan case. Credit Pool photo by Stephen Yang
At that point, Mr. Sullivan jumped up, asking if both sides could approach the bench of Judge Pamela M. Campbell. When the proceedings continued, the questioning by Mr. Vogt shifted gears, focusing on Mr. Daulerio’s excitement in posting the video online.
Mr. Daulerio said under questioning that he never sought the permission of Nick Denton, founder of Gawker Media, to publish the video. Mr. Denton, who was sitting in the courtroom on Monday, is a defendant in the case, along with Gawker and Mr. Daulerio. Mr. Bollea testified last week that he had been “completely humiliated” by Gawker’s posting of a video that showed him having sex with the wife of his former best friend.
Mr. Vogt then guided Mr. Daulerio into some of the more lurid details of the process in which he and others at Gawker edited the video and drafted a story to accompany it, complete with several hyperlinks to posts involving other celebrity sex tapes.
The existence of other sex tapes online was brought up by the defense in the morning as a way to show that Gawker was not alone in posting such videos. Mr. Daulerio noted in testimony that Gawker had posted the video of Mr. Bollea several months after TMZ and TheDirty.com had broken the story and posted stills from the video.
Pressed by Mr. Vogt, Mr. Daulerio admitted there was little news value to showing certain portions of the video, like lewd nudity, but that over all the newsworthiness justified posting it.
At the core of the case is whether Mr. Bollea’s celebrity, and his candid public statements about his sex life, outweigh his right to privacy, and whether Gawker’s First Amendment rights trump his claim to confidentiality. If the jury finds for Mr. Bollea and awards him substantial monetary compensation, it could damage Gawker journalistically and financially, though to what extent will not be clear until the case concludes.
Lawyers for Gawker will most likely appeal any decision against them. If Gawker wins, it could set a powerful precedent for the online publishing world.
Late Monday afternoon, the defense called Mr. Denton to the stand, as well as Emma Carmichael, the editor in chief of Jezebel, a Gawker-owned website dedicated to feminist issues.
Mr. Denton’s testimony on Monday ranged from the mundane issues of his background in journalism to his management style at Gawker. A onetime Financial Times foreign correspondent who covered the fall of communism in eastern bloc countries in the late 1980s, he later reported on the banking industry in Britain and the United States before starting Gawker.
Mr. Bollea’s legal team is set to cross-examine Mr. Denton on Tuesday.
The jury is also expected to be shown the one-minute, 41-second video that was posted on Gawker’s website in October 2012. It showed Mr. Bollea having sex with Heather Clem, the wife at the time of Mr. Bollea’s friend Todd Clem, a Florida shock-radio host now known as Bubba the Love Sponge. Mr. Clem may still be called to testify in court, according to both legal teams and the judge.
Gawker’s legal team has maintained that Mr. Bollea has consistently made his sex life a public matter, bragging about his conquests and his penis size on various radio shows, including with Howard Stern and Mr. Clem.
By LES NEUHAUS
MARCH 14, 2016
NOTICE: THIS WORK MAY BE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT
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Albert J. Daulerio, former editor in chief of Gawker Media. Credit Pool photo by Steve Nesius
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The former editor in chief of the website Gawker testified on Monday that he was not being sincere when he said in a videotaped deposition that children over the age of 4 were fair game for sex tapes to be published online.
The former editor, Albert J. Daulerio, sought to clarify his comments under questioning from Gawker’s lawyer, Michael Sullivan. The deposition was played last Wednesday, in a court where a $100 million suit brought by the former wrestler Hulk Hogan, claiming invasion of privacy, is being tried.
In that testimony, Mr. Daulerio was asked by the plaintiff’s lawyer if he could imagine a situation in which a celebrity sex tape would not be newsworthy.
“If they were a child,” Mr. Daulerio replied.
“Under what age?” the lawyer asked.
“Four.”
Gawker issued a statement later that day saying Mr. Daulerio was being flippant. On Monday, he told Gawker’s lawyer that he was not being serious when he made the comments.
In cross-examination, the legal team for Hulk Hogan, whose legal name is Terry G. Bollea, attacked Mr. Daulerio for his seeming insensitivity.
“You think that’s a funny topic to joke about?” asked Shane Vogt, one of the lawyers for the former wrestler.
“No, I don’t,” Mr. Daulerio replied.
A few exchanges later, Mr. Vogt asked Mr. Daulerio, “You were joking about child pornography, were you not?”
Mr. Daulerio deflected the question, saying that he was being sarcastic, but that he regretted the response in the video deposition.
But Mr. Vogt was dogged, showing both Mr. Daulerio’s video deposition on the subject and then introducing a piece of evidence with Mr. Daulerio’s signature, confirming his testimony in the videotaped deposition.
Mr. Vogt persisted, asking if he hadn’t changed his testimony.
Mr. Daulerio said he had not, though he could have.
Nick Denton, left, founder of Gawker, and a former editor, Albert J. Daulerio, are defendants in the Hulk Hogan case. Credit Pool photo by Stephen Yang
At that point, Mr. Sullivan jumped up, asking if both sides could approach the bench of Judge Pamela M. Campbell. When the proceedings continued, the questioning by Mr. Vogt shifted gears, focusing on Mr. Daulerio’s excitement in posting the video online.
Mr. Daulerio said under questioning that he never sought the permission of Nick Denton, founder of Gawker Media, to publish the video. Mr. Denton, who was sitting in the courtroom on Monday, is a defendant in the case, along with Gawker and Mr. Daulerio. Mr. Bollea testified last week that he had been “completely humiliated” by Gawker’s posting of a video that showed him having sex with the wife of his former best friend.
Mr. Vogt then guided Mr. Daulerio into some of the more lurid details of the process in which he and others at Gawker edited the video and drafted a story to accompany it, complete with several hyperlinks to posts involving other celebrity sex tapes.
The existence of other sex tapes online was brought up by the defense in the morning as a way to show that Gawker was not alone in posting such videos. Mr. Daulerio noted in testimony that Gawker had posted the video of Mr. Bollea several months after TMZ and TheDirty.com had broken the story and posted stills from the video.
Pressed by Mr. Vogt, Mr. Daulerio admitted there was little news value to showing certain portions of the video, like lewd nudity, but that over all the newsworthiness justified posting it.
At the core of the case is whether Mr. Bollea’s celebrity, and his candid public statements about his sex life, outweigh his right to privacy, and whether Gawker’s First Amendment rights trump his claim to confidentiality. If the jury finds for Mr. Bollea and awards him substantial monetary compensation, it could damage Gawker journalistically and financially, though to what extent will not be clear until the case concludes.
Lawyers for Gawker will most likely appeal any decision against them. If Gawker wins, it could set a powerful precedent for the online publishing world.
Late Monday afternoon, the defense called Mr. Denton to the stand, as well as Emma Carmichael, the editor in chief of Jezebel, a Gawker-owned website dedicated to feminist issues.
Mr. Denton’s testimony on Monday ranged from the mundane issues of his background in journalism to his management style at Gawker. A onetime Financial Times foreign correspondent who covered the fall of communism in eastern bloc countries in the late 1980s, he later reported on the banking industry in Britain and the United States before starting Gawker.
Mr. Bollea’s legal team is set to cross-examine Mr. Denton on Tuesday.
The jury is also expected to be shown the one-minute, 41-second video that was posted on Gawker’s website in October 2012. It showed Mr. Bollea having sex with Heather Clem, the wife at the time of Mr. Bollea’s friend Todd Clem, a Florida shock-radio host now known as Bubba the Love Sponge. Mr. Clem may still be called to testify in court, according to both legal teams and the judge.
Gawker’s legal team has maintained that Mr. Bollea has consistently made his sex life a public matter, bragging about his conquests and his penis size on various radio shows, including with Howard Stern and Mr. Clem.