Press freedom advocates alarmed by $300,000 defamation verdict against Louisiana newspaper

Experts say ruling could undermine the ‘actual malice’ standard and make publishers more wary of critical reporting A $300,000 jury verdict won recently by a Louisiana supreme court justice who sued the Advocate , the state’s largest newspaper, for libel over an editorial has caused concern among some US press freedom advocates. One said the decision demonstrated a misunderstanding of a key legal principle governing such cases. And another worries the verdict could have a chilling effect on the media industry’s efforts to report on powerful people and institutions.