Clay Calvert Comments on U.S. Supreme Court Justice Gorsuch’s Suggestion that the Actual Malice Standard be Reconsidered

Clay Calvert, director of the Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project and Brechner Eminent Scholar in Mass Communication at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications, is quoted in the opinion column “Justice Gorsuch is Concerned About Internet Disinformation. But His Solution is Backwards” published in The Washington Post on July 7.

Calvert comments on Justice Neil Gorsuch’s recent opinion suggesting that the Supreme Court reconsider the actual malice standard adopted by the Court in 1964 in New York Times Company v. Sullivan. Gorsuch’s suggested reconsideration is based on his concerns about the rapid spread of disinformation.

The landmark Sullivan case created a precedent that protects media outlets in the U.S. from liability if there is an absence of malice in the publishing of the story.

According to Calvert, most disinformation is so scurrilous that it enjoys no protection even under Sullivan.

“Individual libel suits are an incredibly ineffective, time consuming and expensive mechanism for policing the massive problems of disinformation on the Internet,” he said.

Posted: July 8, 2021
Category: College News, Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project News
Tagged as: Clay Calvert, Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project