Where a doctor claimed that multiple statements in two articles were false and defamatory, but a majority of the challenged statements were not actionable, and the doctor failed to plead facts showing any of the statements were made with actual malice, the claims were dismissed.
Background
On Oct. 2, 2021, Gannett Co. Inc. and The Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, or BEE, published an article that Dr. Peter McCullough claims contains defamatory statements. On Oct. 6, 2021, they published a second article that Dr. McCullough claims contains defamatory statements. Defendants have filed a motion to dismiss and a motion for attorney’s fees.
Jurisdiction
The BEE challenges both the sufficiency of plaintiff’s allegations and the factual bases supporting his claim that the BEE is subject to personal jurisdiction in this court. Plaintiff’s counsel acknowledged that this court cannot exercise jurisdiction over the BEE and agreed to “drop the BEE as a party Defendant.” Accordingly, because plaintiff does not oppose defendant’s motion to dismiss the BEE for lack of personal jurisdiction, that motion will be granted.
Corporate veil
Gannett claims that the BEE is the entity responsible for publishing the articles containing the defamatory statements plaintiff has identified, meaning that plaintiff’s complaint has to plausibly plead facts that pierce the corporate veil to hold Gannett liable.
In plaintiff’s complaint, he affirmatively alleges that both Gannett and the BEE published the...
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