Captain Obvious
02-18-2017, 08:30 AM
http://www.npr.org/2017/02/17/515760101/when-a-politician-says-fake-news-and-a-newspaper-threatens-to-sue-back
A news outlet publishes a story that a Republican politician dismisses as "fake news." Sounds familiar, right?
But in this case, there's a twist. The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel in Colorado is accusing state Sen. Ray Scott of defamation and threatening to sue. If filed, legal experts said it would be the first suit of its kind, potentially setting a legal definition for what is considered fake news and what is not.
The dispute began with an opinion column in the newspaper supporting a bill that would give journalists and others greater access to public records. Scott, who represents Grand Junction and serves as assistant majority leader in the state Senate, postponed a hearing and vote on the bill.
The column (http://www.gjsentinel.com/opinion/articles/better-open-records) urged him to move it forward. "We call on our own Sen. Scott to announce a new committee hearing date and move this bill forward."
Scott took issue with the column on Twitter (https://twitter.com/SCOTTFORCOLO/status/829538743195402243). "We have our own fake news in Grand Junction," Scott tweeted. He then added a separate statement on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/rayscottforcolorado/):
The very liberal GJ Sentinel is attempting to apply pressure for me to move a bill. They have no facts, as usual, and tried to call me out on SB 40 know as the CORA bill. They haven't contacted me to get any information on why the bill has been delayed but choose to run a fake news story demanding I run the bill.
Scott declined an interview request on the advice of his lawyer.
A news outlet publishes a story that a Republican politician dismisses as "fake news." Sounds familiar, right?
But in this case, there's a twist. The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel in Colorado is accusing state Sen. Ray Scott of defamation and threatening to sue. If filed, legal experts said it would be the first suit of its kind, potentially setting a legal definition for what is considered fake news and what is not.
The dispute began with an opinion column in the newspaper supporting a bill that would give journalists and others greater access to public records. Scott, who represents Grand Junction and serves as assistant majority leader in the state Senate, postponed a hearing and vote on the bill.
The column (http://www.gjsentinel.com/opinion/articles/better-open-records) urged him to move it forward. "We call on our own Sen. Scott to announce a new committee hearing date and move this bill forward."
Scott took issue with the column on Twitter (https://twitter.com/SCOTTFORCOLO/status/829538743195402243). "We have our own fake news in Grand Junction," Scott tweeted. He then added a separate statement on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/rayscottforcolorado/):
The very liberal GJ Sentinel is attempting to apply pressure for me to move a bill. They have no facts, as usual, and tried to call me out on SB 40 know as the CORA bill. They haven't contacted me to get any information on why the bill has been delayed but choose to run a fake news story demanding I run the bill.
Scott declined an interview request on the advice of his lawyer.