Just yesterday our counsel sent a letter to The New York Times demanding a retraction. We did this because their article was—and remains—defamatory. Here’s the background:
In a recent article about Facebook’s difficulty in dealing with satire, The New York Times pointed to The Babylon Bee as an example of a “far-right misinformation site” that “sometimes trafficked in misinformation under the guise of satire.” They said we dishonestly “claim” to be satire to protect our presence on Facebook and other social media sites.
This is false and defamatory.
In response to us making some noise about their malicious mischaracterization of us, The Times published an update. It reads:
The update is every bit as damaging (and false) as the original. We have not, in fact, feuded with Snopes as to whether we publish satire or misinformation. Snopes retracted that insinuation with an editors’ note saying it was never their intent to call our motives into question. It’s therefore misleading and malicious to characterize that incident as a feud, as if Snopes ever openly stood by the claim that we are misinformation and not satire.
These mischaracterizations from the Times are nothing new. Previously, Times reporter Kevin Roose wrote a defamatory piece that claimed we “capitalize on confusion” and that we have a “habit of skirting the line between misinformation and satire,” whatever that means.
Here’s the bottom line: The New York Times is using misinformation to smear us as being a source of misinformation.
For better or worse, the NY Times is considered a “reliable source.” We cannot stand idly by as they act with malice to misrepresent us in ways that jeopardize our business.
Many of you have asked how you can help us fight back against the media’s malicious attacks. The best way is to become a paid subscriber. You’ll help cover our legal fees, and you’ll keep us in business if media ever succeeds in their ongoing effort to discredit and deplatform us.
Will you partner with us to save satire and make us cancel-proof?
Seth Dillon
CEO
7 replies on “BABYLON BEE Needs our help!”
IUC for such cases one essential element of defamation is intent of malice. Good luck with that before the court. If this is an actual suit, best action is just ignore it. Or just file for SLAPP if very eager to clash.
The NYTs statements are so ludicrous I believe the Bee CAN make the case of “intent”. In any event, fighting is better than rolling over. Just my humble opinion.
Uh, I completely misread the thing and somehow concluded the NYT is suing the Bee… so my previous comment is trash.
However, in the other direction a suit is IMHO similarly hopeless. When hopeful suits like Gabbard vs. Clinton went nowhere.
If I was smeared by NYT I’d be happy and take it as indication of doing well. Also enjoying some free publicity for the audience with brains, that by now probably just assumkes every word NYT writes means the opposite is true. While NYT’s real audience will not be budged even if a retraction took place.
And I’d definitely not waste subscriber’s money on lawyers, so if I was a subscriber there I’d start considering to drop it if they mean it. Bee should be Bee and just do what they’re good at.
BUT…If the NYTs stirs up enough propaganda, big tech (YT & FB etc.) may use it (falsely) to ban them negating their reach.
My observation is that those oligarchs don’t need any help or excuse. If they want to ban someone just go ahead with it just stating “TOS violation”. In rare cases they said more it was utter BS.
While we are at it, using resources to reduce the impact of big tech would be actually helpful instead of wasting on dead ends.
I love the Bee and I’m already a subscriber. Their smart satire keeps me sane. I will gladly give more to assist in their fight for free speech. I’m sick and damned tired of these traitorous mouthorgans of the progressive left using the same tactics they claim are being used by voices of differing opinion. The NYT is a lying, slandering stain on the name of journalism. I don’t read it – my time is too valuable and my intelligence too precious to have it insulted by fake news that pretends to be otherwise.
Good stuff. Yes the NYT is worse than a tabloid.