A federal jury in Manhattan has ruled that The New York Times is not liable for defamation in a case brought by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. The verdict, delivered after a two-week trial, marks a significant legal victory for the newspaper and for press freedom.
Palin had sued the Times over a 2017 editorial that incorrectly linked her political action committee to a 2011 mass shooting in Arizona that injured then-Representative Gabby Giffords and killed six others. Although the Times quickly issued a correction, Palin argued that the paper acted with “actual malice,” a legal standard necessary for public figures to prove defamation.
The jury found that Palin failed to meet that standard. The judge in the case, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff, had already indicated that he would dismiss the suit regardless of the jury’s decision, citing insufficient evidence of malice.
The case was closely watched as a potential challenge to longstanding protections for journalists under the First Amendment. Legal experts say the verdict reaffirms the high bar public figures must meet to sue for defamation, reinforcing the precedent set by the landmark 1964 New York Times v. Sullivan case.
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