NICHOLAS SANDMANN v. NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY (22-5734); CBS NEWS, INCORPORATED, VIACOMCBS, INCORPORATED, and CBS INTERACTIVE, INCORPORATED (22-5735); ABC NEWS, INC., ABC NEWS INTERACTIVE, INCORPORATED, and WALT DISNEY COMPANY (22-5736); ROLLING STONE, LLC and PENSKE MEDIA CORPORATION (22-5737); GANNETT COMPANY, INC. and GANNETT SATELLITE INFORMATION NETWORK, LLC (22-5738) - Articles

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NICHOLAS SANDMANN v. NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY (22-5734); CBS NEWS, INCORPORATED, VIACOMCBS, INCORPORATED, and CBS INTERACTIVE, INCORPORATED (22-5735); ABC NEWS, INC., ABC NEWS INTERACTIVE, INCORPORATED, and WALT DISNEY COMPANY (22-5736); ROLLING STONE, LLC and PENSKE MEDIA CORPORATION (22-5737); GANNETT COMPANY, INC. and GANNETT SATELLITE INFORMATION NETWORK, LLC (22-5738)

Posted by: Tanja Trezise on Aug 16, 2023

Head Comment: GRIFFIN, J. delivered a separate dissenting opinion.

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ARGUED: Todd V. McMurtry, HEMMER DEFRANK WESSELS, Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky, for Appellant.

Attorneys 2: ARGUED: Nathan Siegel, DAVIS WRIGHT TREMAINE LLP, Washington, D.C., for Appellees.

Attorneys 3: ON BRIEF: Todd V. McMurtry, Jeffrey A. Standen, J. Will Huber, HEMMER DEFRANK WESSELS, Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky, for Appellant.

Attorneys 4: ON BRIEF: Nathan Siegel, Meenakshi Krishnan, DAVIS WRIGHT TREMAINE LLP, Washington, D.C., Robert B. Craig, TAFT STETTINIUS & HOLLISTER LLP, Covington, Kentucky, Dana R. Green, THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY, New York, New York, Darren W. Ford, GRAYDON HEAD & RITCHEY LLP, Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky, John C. Greiner, GRAYDON HEAD & RITCHEY LLP, Cincinnati, Ohio, Natalie J. Spears, Gregory R. Naron, DENTONS US LLP, Chicago, Illinois, Jessica Laurin Meek, DENTONS BINGHAM GREENEBAUM LLP, Indianapolis, Indiana, Kevin T. Shook, FROST BROWN TODD LLC, Columbus, Ohio, Ryan W. Goellner, FROST BROWN TODD LLC, Cincinnati, Ohio, Jason P. Renzelmann, FROST BROWN TODD LLC, Louisville, Kentucky, Michael P. Abate, William R. Adams, KAPLAN JOHNSON ABATE & BIRD LLP, Louisville, Kentucky, Michael J. Grygiel, Cynthia E. Neidl, Candra M. Connelly, GREENBERG TRAURIG, LLP, Albany, New York, for Appellees.

Judge(s): GRIFFIN, STRANCH, and DAVIS, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky at Covington

JANE B. STRANCH, Circuit Judge. On January 18, 2019, then-sixteen-year-old Nicholas Sandmann and his classmates had an interaction with a Native American man named Nathan Phillips by the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Video of the incident went viral, and national news organizations, including the five Defendants (Appellees, or News Organizations) published stories about the day’s events and the ensuing public reaction. Sandmann sued, alleging that the Appellees’ reporting, which included statements from Phillips about the encounter, was defamatory. The district court granted the News Organizations’ joint motion for summary judgment, finding that the challenged statements were opinion, not fact, and therefore nonactionable. Sandmann appealed. For the following reasons, we AFFIRM.

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