Last June, CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees” aired an expose on children who had undergone cardiac surgery at St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach, FL and who later either suffered or died after their surgery. As a result, the hospital had suspended and thereafter closed the program altogether. The hospital claimed that it could not “build sustainable volume” after the “inaccurate media reports.” Dr. Michael Black, who was the head lead of the program, filed a defamation lawsuit against CNN, claiming that alleged false reporting has led to a reputation of being “unfit” in his medical professional capacity.
In the midst of the legal proceedings, Kelly Robinson who reported on the story but was not employed by CNN, was not mentioned in the article. Therefore, a link will need to be made by the source and the alleged defamatory content.
Jeffery Pyle, a partner in our Media and IP practice group, stated, “A plaintiff can cast the reporting as a conspiracy between the source and the reporter.” To read more of the story, click here.