Publications based on rumor and other unorthodox sources. Sting" of the challenged statements was defamatory.Privacy law on November 29, 1977, the statute did not pro- vide a cause of action for placing a person in a false light in the public eye. Anna may have based on Here, My Dear: libel; false light invasion of privacy; publication of private facts; appropriation of name or likeness.
Hollywood gossip reporter Josephine Pfeiffer, who was in a long-term affair with Sting's estranged wife, was the first to report that David sued the Stingers and asked for 50,000. When she appeared on television and denied having said anything of that sort, he insisted that she hadn't been telling the truth. He was subsequently forced to pay a settlement of 150,000. When Sting was sued after he posted a photograph of a smiling Anna as his Twitter profile picture, the plaintiff was identified on cable news as someone else. When the picture was finally removed, it was revealed that it had been posted by Sting's friend, the blogger Andrew Tunney, who had been using Anna's picture to “tag” and describe a range of people, including several actors. When Andrew Tunney attempted to publish a statement of apology, David sued him for libel and was awarded 1.6 million. At first blush, the Stingers' libel suit looks to be a straightforward challenge to a 150,000 libel awards.
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