Palin’s NYT Defamation Case Heads to Jury

⚖️ Closing arguments in Sarah Palin’s defamation case against the New York Times were heard on Friday.

• The former Republican vice presidential candidate sued the Times in 2017 over an editorial suggesting her campaign rhetoric helped incite a 2011 mass shooting in Arizona that severely wounded former Rep. Gabby Giffords and killed six others.
• In the editorial, the Times wrote that Palin’s campaign had circulated a map of electoral districts that put Giffords and 19 other Democrats under stylized crosshairs.
• The Times published a correction hours later clarifying that no such link existed between Palin’s campaign and the shooting, and that the map in question showed electoral districts under crosshairs, not individual politicians.
• Palin and her lawyers accused the Times of deliberately fabricating lies to hurt her image. She’s seeking unspecified damages for reputational and emotional harm.
• The Times claimed former editorial page editor James Bennet didn’t know what he wrote was false, and the entire situation was an “honest mistake.”

👀 Looking ahead… The trial now heads to the jury, which could render a decision anytime in the coming days or weeks.

+In the know: Defamation cases are notoriously difficult for plaintiffs (accusers) to win, since the burden of proof is on them to show clear intent of wrongdoing by the defendant.

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