Jury rules New York Times defamed Alabama basketball player
ESPN • • sports
Key Points:
- An Alabama jury awarded $9.25 million in damages to Kai Spears, a University of Alabama basketball player, after finding The New York Times defamed him by incorrectly reporting he was involved in a fatal shooting.
- The Times had published a report citing an anonymous source that Spears was a passenger in a car involved in the January 2023 shooting, but later issued a correction acknowledging the error.
- Spears sued the Times in 2023, claiming the false report caused emotional distress and unjustly linked him to a murder.
- The Times expressed disappointment with the verdict, calling it an honest mistake and indicating it was reviewing legal options.
- This case marks a rare loss for The New York Times, which had not lost a defamation lawsuit in the U.S. for over 50 years.
