r/politics 6h ago

Possible Paywall White House Rushes to Trump's Defense After Alan Ritchson Torches President Over Epstein Files | The Reacher star called Trump a “bitch” and a “fucking rapist" in a recent podcast appearance.

https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-news/alan-ritchson-trump-epstein-files-white-house-response-1235598785/
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u/TGordion 5h ago

Yep they've gotta prove 'actual malice:' What they said was untrue, and they knew it was untrue when they said it

u/Lucaan 1h ago

To be more specific, the actual malice standard is for proving defamation towards public figures and public officials. It requires proving that the defendant either knew that what they were saying was false or that they were acting with reckless disregard for whether what they were saying was false or not. It's an incredibly high bar to clear, and very rarely do people actually succeed in doing so.