subject: The limited amount of editorializing on radio and television stations also reflects fears of legal reprisals [print this page] In June 1986, the Supreme Court made it easier for the news media to gain dismissal of libel suits without the high costs of trials. In Tag Heuer Replica a 6-3 ruling, the Court held in favor of columnist Jack Anderson and against the conservative Liberty Lobby. A magazine edited by Anderson had called the group neo-Nazi, anti-Semitic, racist, and fascist. The Court held that judges should dismiss cases unless evidence of "actual malice" by the media was "clear and convincing." To establish actual malice, a complainant must show that the media source knew the material was false or published it with reckless disregard for whether it was true or false.
The limited amount of editorializing on radio and television stations also reflects fears of legal reprisals
