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Hulk Hogan Awarded $115 Million in Privacy Suit Against Gawker Media

posted by CoolHand on Saturday March 19 2016, @06:51PM   Printer-friendly
from the hulk-smash dept.

takyon writes:

Hulk Hogan has been awarded damages of $115 million in a privacy suit against Gawker, which posted a sex tape featuring Hogan (real name: Terry G. Bollea) online:

The retired wrestler Hulk Hogan was awarded $115 million in damages on Friday by a Florida jury in an invasion of privacy case against Gawker.com over its publication of a sex tape — an astounding figure that tops the $100 million he had asked for, that will probably grow before the trial concludes, and that could send a cautionary signal to online publishers despite the likelihood of an appeal by Gawker.

The wrestler, known in court by his legal name, Terry G. Bollea, sobbed as the verdict was announced in late afternoon, according to people in the courtroom. The jury had considered the case for about six hours.

Mr. Bollea's team said the verdict represented "a statement as to the public's disgust with the invasion of privacy disguised as journalism," adding: "The verdict says, 'No more.' "

NYT also has this guide to the case.

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  • (Score: 2) by linkdude64 on Sunday March 20 2016, @12:10AM

    by linkdude64 (5482) on Sunday March 20 2016, @12:10AM (#320595)

    Nick Denton - the founder and CEO of Gawker Media - has stated previously that a 100 Million dollar suit would "Sink Gawker" but IIRC that was before they were purchased by a Russian media mogul, who may step in to save them. They are also appealing the verdict, so it's uncertain if the charges will actually be sustained.

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  • (Score: 4, Informative) by useless on Sunday March 20 2016, @01:12AM

    by useless (426) on Sunday March 20 2016, @01:12AM (#320612)
    The need to post a $50M bond to appeal [cnn.com], though. Last year, Gawker made $8M. The Russian investment wasn't a full buyout, just a minority stake. They might not have the cash to appeal.

    • (Score: 2) by linkdude64 on Sunday March 20 2016, @02:36AM

      by linkdude64 (5482) on Sunday March 20 2016, @02:36AM (#320634)

      Ahh, I see. I certainly hope they do not.

      I've been trying to stay away from clicking on all of the major news sources in an effort to not let this end up getting Gawker last-minute revenue that might help save them, so your comment is appreciated.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 20 2016, @04:39PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 20 2016, @04:39PM (#320803)

        There is insurance for this sort of thing. Their chances of appealing are exactly the same as their chances of securing such insurance. If they do not appeal then the insurers' DD didn't come out so good.