I guess this guy Bob took Oliver to court....and lost.
I guess this guy Bob took Oliver to court....and lost.
I think I can see why you'd identify with that.
A real nasty shitheal the guy is...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_E._Murray
I had to look up Bob Murray to see what it's all about.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_E._Murray
Lawsuits
Journalists and the press
Murray has filed over a dozen defamation lawsuits against journalists and newspapers, none of which reached judgment in his favor. As an example of the repeated lawsuits against journalists, Robert Murray and Murray Energy filed a lawsuit on August 27, 2012, against environment reporter Ken Ward Jr. and the Charleston Gazette.
Last Week Tonight
In June 2017, Murray Energy issued a cease and desist letter to the television show Last Week Tonight following the show's attempt to obtain comment about the coal industry. The show went ahead with the episode (June 18), in which host John Oliver discussed the Crandall Canyon Mine collapse and expressed the opinion that Murray did not do enough to protect his miners' safety. Three days later, Murray and his companies brought suit against Oliver, the show's writers, HBO, and Time Warner. The lawsuit alleged that, in the Last Week Tonight show, Oliver "incited viewers to do harm to Mr. Murray and his companies." The ACLU filed an amicus brief in support of HBO in the case; the brief has been described as "hilarious," and the "snarkiest legal brief ever." The brief also included a comparison of Murray with the fictional character Dr. Evil that was used in the Oliver show, with the explanation that "it should be remembered that truth is an absolute defense to a claim of defamation."
On August 11, 2017 a federal district court judge ruled that Murray Energy suits against the New York Times and HBO could each proceed in a lower state court. The suit against HBO was dismissed with prejudice on February 21, 2018.
In November 2019, John Oliver discussed the implications of the lawsuit on his show after Murray dropped the suit. Oliver noted that Murray was able to incur little risk to himself by filing his lawsuit in West Virginia, a jurisdiction that did not have any anti-SLAPP legislation and despite neither Oliver nor Murray living there. HBO was forced to cover $200,000 in legal fees, which smaller media outlets would not be able to absorb, discouraging negative coverage of Murray. Murray's reputation for litigiousness may have deterred other media outlets from covering him, including sexual harassment charges against him.
Here's an explanation in Oliver's case...
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