Dan Snyder is Not Happy

[kchoya]

I continued to be amazed at how stupid public figures can be when they are bothered by something in the media. Instead of ignoring the publication, take their fight public, thus ensuring a much wider dissemination of the very piece to which they object. I love Dave McKenna and started reading his work while an undergrad.

The WaPo article is here:

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/01/AR2011020105889.html

The original column is here:

mirror.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/40063/the-cranky-redskins-fans-guide-to-dan-snyder.html

And for the legal nerds among us, the City Paper provides copies of the letters back and forth among counsel:

www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2011/02/02/to-our-readers/

As a lawyer, let me say I cherish the days when I get to write a letter like the one from the City Paper's attorney.

[Coast2CoastHoya]

Here's some more fun with Dan Snyder:

1. Go to www.google.com

2. Type "Dan Snyder is a" in the search box, but don't hit any buttons.

3. Watch as google fills in the rest!

[DFW HOYA]

That letter from Snyder's attorney was about the dumbest thing I've read in a sports context since that now-famous letter to the Cleveland Browns threatening legal action for fans launching paper airplanes at Municipal Stadium.

www.snopes.com/business/consumer/browns.asp

[jgalt]

While I agree with everything everybody is saying, today a reporter (whose name escapes me) not involved with either the post or WCP said he had seen the evidence that Snyder's group has and that it is much more substantial than anyone thinks.

I dont think that is true, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out. Hopefully with a judge telling snyder how much of an idiot he is

[SFHoya99]

Feb 2, 2011 21:12:34 GMT -5 jgalt said:

While I agree with everything everybody is saying, today a reporter (whose name escapes me) not involved with either the post or WCP said he had seen the evidence that Snyder's group has and that it is much more substantial than anyone thinks.

I dont think that is true, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out. Hopefully with a judge telling snyder how much of an idiot he is

Perhaps, but Snyder's first accusation is that drawing horns on him is anti-Semitic. No, really.

It goes on to list a bunch of things that honestly may or may not be true -- but essentially attacking the writer for making connections between certain things that are ultimately unprovable in a legal setting but are pretty common in commentary, whether sports or politics or whatever. Having no legal training, I don't know how much of a case is there.

But the opening -- citing the anti-semitic accusation first (an attack to the attacks it seems to deplore in the paper, mind you) and then playing the card of Dan Snyder's wife having cancer before actually attacking things that actually may be factually wrong screams scare tactic to me.

[kghoya]

iapps.courts.state.ny.us/fbem/DocumentDisplayServlet?documentId=tirVQewp3Wt/s2j+6wUb0A==&system=prod

[vcjack]

Danny would totally turn off the internet if he could

[bmartin]

Gene Weingarten:
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/02/AR2011020205483.html

Memo to Dan Snyder: Thank you for your stewardship of the Redskins

I just want you to know you have my full support in this matter, as I support everything you have done during your stewardship of the Redskins. You rock. I wish you good health and long life and hope you run the franchise for many, many years to come. I say this with utmost sincerity as a lifelong fan of the New York Giants.

[theexorcist]

Feb 2, 2011 21:12:34 GMT -5 jgalt said:

While I agree with everything everybody is saying, today a reporter (whose name escapes me) not involved with either the post or WCP said he had seen the evidence that Snyder's group has and that it is much more substantial than anyone thinks.

I dont think that is true, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out. Hopefully with a judge telling snyder how much of an idiot he is

I've looked again - I believe that everything in the article can be proven correct. You can't sue for libel when it's true.

For the anti-Semitic accusation, even if it is true (ha!), it's not illegal to publish it.

Best of luck, Danny boy. You're gonna need it.

[TBird41]

Feb 3, 2011 10:54:50 GMT -5 theexorcist said:

Feb 2, 2011 21:12:34 GMT -5 jgalt said:

While I agree with everything everybody is saying, today a reporter (whose name escapes me) not involved with either the post or WCP said he had seen the evidence that Snyder's group has and that it is much more substantial than anyone thinks.

I dont think that is true, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out. Hopefully with a judge telling snyder how much of an idiot he is

I've looked again - I believe that everything in the article can be proven correct. You can't sue for libel when it's true.

For the anti-Semitic accusation, even if it is true (ha!), it's not illegal to publish it.

Best of luck, Danny boy. You're gonna need it.

Burden of proof is going to be on Snyder. He either musters enough evidence to prove its incorrect or it'll get tossed, and likely tossed early. I'm not up on my 1st Amendment, but I'm pretty sure that the press gets a lot of protections against libel suits for exactly this reason--deep pocked celebrity / gov't official suing to suppress the speech.

One of the cases that is on point here is New York v. Sullivan, which established the "actual malice" standard: "The actual malice standard requires that the plaintiff in a defamation or libel case prove that the publisher of the statement in question knew that the statement was false or acted in reckless disregard of its truth or falsity."

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Times_Co._v._Sullivan

This sucker is getting dismissed early, no matter how much money Snyder spends on lawyers.

[kchoya]

Feb 3, 2011 9:34:57 GMT -5 bmartin said:

Gene Weingarten:
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/02/AR2011020205483.html

Memo to Dan Snyder: Thank you for your stewardship of the Redskins

I just want you to know you have my full support in this matter, as I support everything you have done during your stewardship of the Redskins. You rock. I wish you good health and long life and hope you run the franchise for many, many years to come. I say this with utmost sincerity as a lifelong fan of the New York Giants.

McKenna is good. Weingarten is great.

[jgalt]

Yesterday on Kojo Nnamdi (an NPR show here in DC if you were not aware) they had a long discussion about this. A law (but she might have been a philosophy professor at the law school) professor from Gtown was on at the end. She said the only difficulty that WCP might have is proving that Dan Snyder is a "public figure". I cant imagine they would have that problem, especially after the Redskins COO said of Snyder, "He understands, he's in a high-profile position. You're gonna get criticized."

Dan Steinberg (McKenna's friend and neighbor) has been all over this on twitter and has had two great posts on it.

The first are his thoughts on the subject, with an amazing rebuttal to the Cancer argument:
voices.washingtonpost.com/dcsportsbog/2011/02/why_the_redskins_are_suing_cit.html

The second has a video from Bret Haber, WUSA 9's sports director, who had a great opinion piece on this last night
[urlhttp://voices.washingtonpost.com/dcsportsbog/2011/02/brett_haber_on_daniel_snyder.html[/url]

WCP may not have enough money to combat this on their own, but many of the media outlets combine to publicly speak out against this move it may have a some effect on Snyder. It is clear that he is a bully and it has most likely resulted from he being bullied as a teen (something that has been chronicled before). He is the embodiment of all of the worst principles of management imaginable.

[kchoya]

How can a person be so rich and yet so stupid?

www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-i-am-suing-washington-city-paper/2011/04/25/AFYQC1kE_story.html

A fifth grade could have written a better column (with less exclamations points!!!).

[rosslynhoya]

Apr 26, 2011 10:16:30 GMT -5 kchoya said:

How can a person be so rich and yet so stupid?

Hey, that was my suggested replacement for "Utraque Unum!"

More to the point, Danny Boy's column focuses mainly on the "forgery" allegation. However, there's no reference to "forgery" in McKenna's column.

What Danny Boy is perversely exaggerating is the factual statement that Snyder Communications was fined $3.1 million for "slamming" - which if you owned a landline during the late 90s/early 00s, was an illegal practice that virtually all telecomms conducted on a regular basis.

I suspect that most normal people have forgotten all about slamming (rank it up there with eavesdropping on a party line); why would Danny Boy want to draw excess attention to exactly what it was that his company was doing?

[DFW HOYA]

Yes, this man actually wrote the following line:

"I am not thin-skinned about personal criticism."

[guru]

Apr 26, 2011 10:41:33 GMT -5 rosslynhoya said:

Apr 26, 2011 10:16:30 GMT -5 kchoya said:

How can a person be so rich and yet so stupid?

Hey, that was my suggested replacement for "Utraque Unum!"

More to the point, Danny Boy's column focuses mainly on the "forgery" allegation. However, there's no reference to "forgery" in McKenna's column.

What Danny Boy is perversely exaggerating is the factual statement that Snyder Communications was fined $3.1 million for "slamming" - which if you owned a landline during the late 90s/early 00s, was an illegal practice that virtually all telecomms conducted on a regular basis.

I suspect that most normal people have forgotten all about slamming (rank it up there with eavesdropping on a party line); why would Danny Boy want to draw excess attention to exactly what it was that his company was doing?

Actually, there is:

"That’s the Dan Snyder who got caught forging names as a telemarketer with Snyder Communications, made a great view of the Potomac River for himself by going all Agent Orange on federally protected lands, and lost over $121 million of Bill Gates’ money while selling an “official mattress” while in charge of Six Flags."

Doesn't change the fact that Snyder is a fool at a bronxhoya87 level.

[kchoya]

I provide this link not so much for the words, but what appears to be a late 80's photo of Tony Kornheiser and, I think, Michael Wilbon and Thomas Boswell.

www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/post/tony-kornheiser-finally-weighs-in-on-the-dan-snyder-city-paper-lawsuit/2011/04/26/AFpDkQrE_blog.html

[hoyainspirit]

Apr 26, 2011 16:56:55 GMT -5 kchoya said:

I provide this link not so much for the words, but what appears to be a late 80's photo of Tony Kornheiser and, I think, Michael Wilbon and Thomas Boswell.

www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/post/tony-kornheiser-finally-weighs-in-on-the-dan-snyder-city-paper-lawsuit/2011/04/26/AFpDkQrE_blog.html

Wow. Tony had hair!

[Bando]

So Synder has responded to the CityPaper's anti-SLAPP motion here. His argument seems to be that DC doesn't have the right to pass an anti-SLAPP statute. I'd love for the board lawyers to chime in, but isn't this:

1. Very Wrong. DC laws can be overridden by Congress, but if Congress doesn't take any action laws passed by the Council and signed by the Mayor become law.

2. Completely irrelevant. Snyder seems to be arguing the appeal rather than responding to the motion. This seems to be the written equivalent of "the whole system's out of order!"

Again, lawyers, I'd appreciate your take.

[hoyainspirit]

Danny Boy finally regains his senses and drops City Paper lawsuit. 'Bout time.