Daily Mail recently published a story claiming that the United States’ first lady, Melania Trump, was offering other services other than modeling. The article also had statements indicating that both Melania and Paolo Zampolli, the manager of the modeling agency, had denied the claims, but did not have evidence to support the affirmations. The article also included a prominently displayed old nude photograph of Melania seemingly posing for a photo-shoot, which covered almost the whole right-hand part of page 15 of the newspaper.
In the article, there was also an allegation that Melania Trump and her husband, Donald Trump, may have met a few years prior to their actual meeting, supposedly ‘staging’ it as a ‘ruse.’ Moreover, the article was also featured by Mail Online. This information did not go well with Melania, making her sue both Mail Online and Daily Mail. The court found the two media organizations guilty of libel against Mrs. Trump and ordered them to pay a huge sum of money, estimated to be about $3 million as compensation for the damages and legal costs that she incurred as a result of the case.
The first Amendment does not protect individuals and organizations proven guilty of defaming other people either through written or verbal communication from facing legal penalties. Defamation laws offer protection to individuals from false and damaging statements. Both Daily Mail and Mail Online published an article touching on the life of Melania without having proof to substantiate the allegations, making them guilty of issuing false statements about another person.
The prominent display of the nude photo of Melania and statements of the claims were sufficient evidences by the plaintiff to indicate that the defamatory remarks were illegally communicated to a third party. Media personnel should borrow a leaf from this lawsuit, especially while publishing statements regarding public figures; they should only communicate the information of which they have sufficient proof.
Bibliography
Bowcott, Owen, and Holly Watt. “Melania Trump Accepts Daily Mail Damages and Apology in Libel Case.” The Guardian, 2017. Web.