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Defamation
"But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed."
OTHELLO
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Milkovich
v.
Lorain Journal Co.
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Defamation
Chief Justice Rehnquist Opinion
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June 21, 1990
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Excerpt:
Respondent J. Theodore Diadiun authored an article in an Ohio
newspaper implying that petitioner Michael Milkovich, a local high
school wrestling coach, lied under oath in a judicial proceeding about
an incident involving petitioner and his team which occurred at a
wrestling match. Petitioner sued Diadiun and the newspaper for libel,
and the Ohio Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court entry of summary
judgment against petitioner. This judgment was based in part on the
grounds that the article constituted an "opinion" protected from the
reach of state defamation law by the First Amendment to the United
States Constitution. We hold that the First Amendment does not prohibit
the application of Ohio's libel laws to the alleged defamations
contained in the article.
... Since the latter half of the 16th century, the common law has afforded a cause of action for damage to a person's reputation by the publication of false and defamatory statements.
In Shakespeare's OTHELLO, Iago says to Othello:
Good name in man and woman, dear my lord.
Is the immediate jewel of their souls.
Who steals my purse steals trash;
'Tis something, nothing;
'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed.
Defamation law developed not only as a means of allowing an individual to vindicate his good name, but also for the purpose of obtaining redress for harm caused by such statements.
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