Harming someone's reputation in speech with falsehoods is known as slander, and doing the same thing in writing is known as libel (which sometimes includes speech as well). Any ordinary citizen who can claim to have suffered harm as a result of such defamation may sue. So why aren't politicians suing all the time? Because an exception is made for "public persons" (a category that includes most other celebrities as well), who must also prove that any such statement was made with "reckless disregard for the truth". And although, even by that standard, public persons are defamed all the time, most of them have decided that it's better to just grin and bear it.
The article was full of lies and defamations.
accused the newspaper columnist of defamation of character
Recent Examples on the WebEspousing those conspiracy theories, which have been widely debunked, has embroiled the MyPillow CEO and others in defamation lawsuits from voting machine companies like Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic.—Josh Margolin, ABC News, 1 Nov. 2024 The former president has previously filed several lawsuits against media organizations, including a March defamation case against ABC News over a question asked by anchor George Stephanopoulos during an interview.—CBS News, 31 Oct. 2024 Dominion filed several defamation lawsuits against those who promoted conspiracy theories blaming the company's equipment for Donald Trump's loss in the 2020 election.—Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024 Collins pressed, noting the defamation lawsuit filed against Lake from an Arizona election official.—Lauren Irwin, The Hill, 29 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for defamation
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'defamation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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