Tucker v. Philadelphia Daily News
| Citation | 848 A.2d 113,577 Pa. 598 |
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of Pennsylvania |
| Decision Date | 29 April 2004 |
| Parties | C. Delores TUCKER and William Tucker, her Husband, v. PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, Phila. Newspapers, Inc.; Knight-Ridder, Inc.; Sports & Entertainment Litigation Reporter; Andrews Publications, Inc.; Legal Communication, Ltd.; Legal Intelligencer; Meridian Venture Partners, L.P.; Baseline II, Inc.; and the Entertainment Litigation Reporter. Appeal of Phila. Daily News, Phila. Newspapers, Inc.; Knight-Ridder, Inc.; Legal Communications, Ltd.; Legal Intelligencer. |
Michael E. Baughman, Esq., Robert C. Heim, Esq., Amy B. Ginensky, Esq., for Phil. Daily News; Phila. News Papers, Inc.; Night-Ridder, Inc.
James William Gicking, Esq., Jonathan F. Ball, Esq., for Legal Intelligencer; Legal Communications, LTD.
Richard C. Angino, Esq., for C. Delores Tucker and William Tucker.
Before: ZAPPALA, C.J., and CAPPY, CASTILLE, NIGRO, NEWMAN, SAYLOR and EAKIN, JJ.
Today, we consider the extent to which Pennsylvania libel law can permissibly restrict the free expression rights1 of Appellant-newspapers2 to print what they deem appropriate. The issues presented force us to examine when a statement is capable of a defamatory meaning and to set forth the boundaries demarcating where concern for the protection of the reputations3 of public figures in Pennsylvania must yield to the need for an open discussion of their involvement in public affairs. "In cases where that line must be drawn, the rule is that we examine for ourselves the statements in issue and the circumstances under which they were made to see ... whether they are of a character which the principles of the First Amendment, as adopted by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, protect." New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254, 285, 84 S.Ct. 710, 11 L.Ed.2d 686 (1964) (internal citations and quotations omitted). To that end, we begin by reviewing the facts and procedural history of this case.
Appellee C. Delores Tucker (Mrs. Tucker) is a well-known public figure4 who, from 1993 through 1997, led a high-profile "crusade" against "gangsta rap" music. R.R. 26a, R.R. 62a. Mrs. Tucker's campaign is undeniably one of public concern.
In February of 1996, Interscope Records distributed the album "All Eyez on Me," in which deceased rapper Tupac Shakur responded to Mrs. Tucker's "attack"5 on gangsta-rap with the songs "Wonda Why They Call U Bitch" and "How Do U Want It."6 The lyrics conjure images of prostitution, and assert that Mrs. Tucker was only interested in money and had sold-out black interests to white politicians.
On July 21, 1997, Mrs. Tucker and her, husband, William Tucker7 (hereinafter the "Tuckers") filed suit against the Estate of Tupac Shakur8 and entities associated with the production, distribution, and sale of his music in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Tucker v. MTS, Inc. t/a Tower Records et al., No. 97 CV 4717 (E.D.Pa. filed July 21, 1997) (hereinafter, Tucker II).9 The Tucker II Complaint alleged that the production, distribution, and sale of records including "All Eyez on Me," caused Mrs. Tucker to fear for her life and suffer emotional distress. Mrs. Tucker demanded damages in an amount exceeding $10,000,000.00.10 Additionally, in paragraph fifty of the Tucker II Complaint, Mr. Tucker claimed that "as a result of his wife's injuries, [he] suffered a loss of advice, companionship and consortium." (R.R. 64a.)
On July 31, 1997, Mrs. Tucker issued a press release explaining that she filed the Complaint in Tucker II, which she described as "a multi-million dollar suit directed at the heart of the gangsta rap music in the US[sic]." (R.R. 72a.) The press release indicated that Mrs. Tucker had received death threats and that she would continue to fight against gangsta rap music in spite of them because she was "even more concerned about the many, many young lives that have already been lost needlessly and the little children who will be lost if [she did] not say ... to this industry—`STOP NOW.'" (R.R. 73a.) The press release also notes, without further explanation, that Mrs. Tucker's "husband, William, a well known businessman, joins her as a plaintiff in the suit." Id.
The case before us arose because the Tuckers claim to have been defamed by the way in which several newspapers reported on Tucker II. Specifically, on July 29, 1998, the Tuckers commenced the current action (hereinafter, Tucker IV11) against Appellant-newspapers alleging that they had defamed the Tuckers since they interpreted the loss of consortium claim in Tucker II to include a claim for damage to the sexual relationship between the Tuckers.
Because the issues in this case require us to determine whether the Tuckers have established a defamation cause of action against Appellant-newspapers, it is essential that we review the content of the articles they published. We now address them.
On August 2, 1997, a picture of Mrs. Tucker and Mr. Shakur appeared on the front page of the Philadelphia Daily News with a headline, which read, "A DIRTY RAP Suit v. Shakur estate says `vile' lyrics ruined her rep—and her sex life." The headline for the Philadelphia Daily News article was "Suit: Tupac dead wrong" with a sub-headline, which read, "Rights leader says rapper's strong words ruined her life."12 Two days later, on August 4, 1997, The Legal Intelligencer also reported on the Tuckers' federal lawsuit against the record companies. The headline read "Gangsta Rap Critic Sues Shakur Estate For Album's Derogatory References."13 The Tuckers allege that these articles are defamatory because they reported that the Tuckers sought damages because the lyrics diminished their sex life. (R.R. 50a.)
Mrs. Tucker claims that Appellant-newspapers ignored her press release and focused instead on the "sensationalize[d] ... sexual `spin'" provided by the attorney for the Estate of Shakur. She alleges that the newspapers "distorted and misrepresented [her] Complaint as being one where she brought a $10 million lawsuit only because lewd lyrics destroyed her sex life ... [and that they] misrepresented and/or falsely represented that the July 21, 1997, [Tucker II] Complaint is a lawsuit wherein [the Tuckers] aver that Tupac Shakur's lewd lyrics had affected or destroyed the Tuckers' sex life." (R.R. 32a-33a.) Central to her claim is a contention that, "the defendants have slandered and defamed [her and her husband] by making [them] objects of ridicule in the world, and ... with knowledge [of the falsity] or reckless disregard of the truth ... of the articles." (R.R. 38a-39a.) Accordingly, in this case, Mrs. Tucker and her husband demanded compensatory damages in the amount of $1 million for current and future medical expenses, mental pain and suffering, inconvenience, loss of life's pleasures, humiliation, and embarrassment. They also sought punitive damages in amounts sufficient to prevent the Appellant-newspapers from publishing future articles similar to the ones at issue in the instant case. (R.R. 39a.)
On March 19, 1999, in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas (trial court), Appellant-newspapers filed Preliminary Objections to the Complaint of the Tuckers. Appellant-newspapers argued to the trial court that the Complaint should be dismissed because: "(1) the [newspapers'] Article[s] and the statements contained therein, are not capable of a defamatory meaning as a matter of law; (2) [the Tuckers] have failed to satisfy the pleading standard of actual malice to support their claim for defamation or their prayer for punitive damages; and (3) the Article[s], even if defamatory, [are] protected by the media's long-standing privilege to publish fair and accurate accounts of judicial proceedings." (R.R. 117a-118a.) The trial court sustained the Preliminary Objections and dismissed the Complaint. First, the court agreed with the argument of the Appellant-newspapers that the articles are not capable of a defamatory meaning. The court explained:
Based on the information set forth in the complaint and relevant case law, Tucker has failed to state a cause of action for defamation. She has not presented evidence that her reputation was actually damaged, only that she feels ridiculed when people ask her about the Shakur case. She does not contend that people have stopped asking her to speak at public engagements or provide other indicators that her position in the community has diminished. The only harm that Tucker alleges is that people question her about the lawsuit. Her embarrassment from the questions does not rise to the level of harming her reputation or deterring third parties from associating with her. Because Tucker's complaint failed to show any defamation resulted from the publication of their articles, the Defendants' Preliminary Objections are properly sustained.
Tucker v. Legal Communications, Ltd., No. 3644, slip op. at 6 (C.P. Phila. Co. filed June 16, 1999) (footnote omitted). The trial court also accepted the argument of Appellant-newspapers that the Tuckers had failed to prove actual malice because they "provided no evidence that the authors had knowledge that their statements were false or acted with reckless disregard for the truth." Id. at 7. Indeed, the court found that the statements were not false because the definition of consortium includes sexual relations. Id. at 7-8. The trial court also agreed with the argument of Appellant-newspapers that, because the articles, taken as a whole, were fair and accurate and were not published for the sole purpose of causing harm to the Tuckers, the report was protected by the fair reporting privilege. Id. at 8-9.
...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Green v. Cosby, Civil Action No. 14–30211–MGM
...Plaintiff Green, Plaintiff Serignese was physically unable to defend herself. (Id. ¶ 49.)Many years later, in February of 2005, the Philadelphia Daily News published an interview with Plaintiff Green in which she publicly disclosed the sexual assault that had occurred in the 1970s. (Id. ¶ 2......
-
Mzamane v. Winfrey
...suffered the kind of harm which has grievously fractured his standing in the community of respectable society." Tucker v. Phila. Daily News, 577 Pa. 598, 848 A.2d 113, 124 (2004) (quoting Scott-Taylor, Inc. v. Stokes, 425 Pa. 426, 229 A.2d 733, 734 (1967)). Importantly, only statements of f......
-
Schatzberg v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co.
...a reader or listener). “To ascertain this meaning, the court must view the statements in context.” Id. (citing Tucker v. Phila. Daily News, 577 Pa. 598, 848 A.2d 113, 124 (2004)) (internal quotations omitted). A statement is defamatory if it “tends to harm the reputation of another as to lo......
-
Ruder v. Pequea Valley Sch. Dist.
...or listener.” Id. To ascertain this meaning, the court “must view the statements in context.” Id. (citing Tucker v. Phila. Daily News, 577 Pa. 598, 848 A.2d 113, 124 (2004) (citing Thomas Merton Ctr. v. Rockwell Int'l Corp., 497 Pa. 460, 442 A.2d 213, 215–16 (Pa.1981))). Generally speaking ......