A defamation lawsuit by actor James Woods could have implications for users of Twitter, Facebook and other social media. As these court filings indicate, in July 2015, Woods was engaged in a war of words on Twitter with anonymous user “Abe List,” when the latter tweeted: “cocaine addict James Woods still sniffing and spouting.” Woods sued the anonymous “John Doe” user in Los Angeles County Superior Court for defamation and invasion of privacy, and has asked for $10 million in damages.
In his answer, defendant John Doe asked the court to strike Woods’ complaint. Doe said that his insult of Woods was just a satirical, rhetorical flourish of the type Woods himself uses all the time, and that it was a political statement as well, all protected under the First Amendment. Doe claims that Twitter carries a lot of such insulting, hyperbolic, overheated speech by many users. Doe says that the controversy in question began when Woods insulted “Bruce” (now Caitlyn) Jenner over Twitter, writing about Jenner’s dress selection and tying it to a political attack on Planned Parenthood. Doe says that he responded to Woods’ tweet by tweeting that Woods is a “cocaine addict,” something that, according to Doe, is a common insult on Twitter, even one used by Woods himself, that wasn’t meant to be taken as a provable statement of fact.
Woods, however, hired a linguistics professor who opined that Doe’s tweet was a statement of fact, not merely an opinion, and thus could be actionable under defamation law. The court agreed with Woods and refused to strike the complaint, letting the lawsuit go forward. If Doe loses, he could be required to pay substantial damages to Woods and reveal his identity.
This episode is a reminder for social media users, whether individual or corporate, anonymous or named, that (1) their online anonymity may not always be protected; and (2) insults made over social media, sometimes under the boldness of anonymity, could cross the line into defamation if they are considered false statements of fact, rather than merely opinions.
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