A recent article from the Richmond Times-Dispatch gives some more insight in to the case between Andy Bitter and BH Media. Andy has countersued for alleged defamation.
LINK
In that article, reporter Jeff Sturgeon wrote of the transfer from Tucker to Bitter: "The company gave Bitter the login for the Twitter account, and Bitter alone has had access to it since then, the suit said."
Thursday's filing by Bitter's legal team indicated that he received access to the account from an email sent from Tucker's personal email address to Bitter's personal email address, not from the company.
I think this confirms what many TKPers thought might be the basis of his defense.
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Yep, sounds like it was Kyle Tucker's personal account before sending it over to Andy.
well. Starting to look like this could really blow up in the RT's face. I wonder at what point they're going to wish they'd just let this whole thing go?
I'm guessing they're already wishing so. They've already lost the court of public opinion and now it looks like they are going to lose the real court battle.
Does someone still have the emails...where's the
paperelectron trail?Kyle Tucker tweeted a thinly veiled shot at RT where he strongly implies he has all the emails because he never deletes them.
Based solely on lawyer's names, Bitter's got this in the bag.
Was really hoping one of the counsels imcluded Daniel L Crandall
Is Jeff Krasnow still a thing?
I think RT would have had to be physically harmed for that to happen, not just butthurt.
RT might as well just hire this guy to represent then
RT better call Saul
Anyone got the over under on this one? I wanna put some cash on Bitter.
Take 'em to the cleaners, Andy! Roanoke Times Disgrace indeed.
Normally you might say he'd own them after a lawsuit, but who'd want to? Nobody has that many birdcages to line.
C'mon now, you guys are slamming a decent small market newspaper. It may be fashionable these days, but I don't think denigrating newspapers is a good thing, even in jest, and I don't think it's funny. I do think it's funny that all of a sudden, Bitter is a hero here. This particular flap is of no interest to someone like me that thinks Twitter is not a good thing at all, but I've always been both a Bitter and a Roanoke Times supporter, unlike a lot of others on here. I know, it was just a joke, lighten up, etc. Just my instant response and hey, it's just my opinion, man.
Edit: Obviously, I need football to start. And the bird cage quip was sort of funny.
I'd like to see the little guy beat a corporation.
Now I KNOW there's ZERO way you typed that with a straight face without laughing.
So now he's publically trolling other reporters (ie not who's sueing him) just doing their jobs? Classy
yep. to quote Bitter himself: kind of a jerk move
Being as how were talking about Mark Berman here Ill allow it.
I'm not a fan of Berman either, but this is the guy Bitter felt compelled to stand up for and call Buzz a jerk for doing his job. He had an opportunity here to move on and let RT hang themselves. Either take the high road or swim in the gutters. He's chosen the later.
For goodness sake, guys. Have you followed Berman and me on Twitter at all? Gentle jabs going both ways. Mostly just ribbing him for the fact that his afternoon game got delayed by like 4 hours.
Not on twitter at all. poor assumption on my part. I'll leave it up so people can see my mistake and downvote as the see fit. Still feel the defamation lawsuit is a bad move though. good luck with it though, and as stated previously if you own the account I certainly believe you should have it.
I wish I could say more about it, but I just can't at this stage in this forum. Hopefully it all gets cleared up soon.
understandable. I'll keep the assumptions at bay from now until it gets resolved.
and general point. while the Buzz incident doesn't sit well with me personally, I am genuinely happy for anyone that works hard and good things come there way. Kudos to the Athletic position. I sincerely hope it's something great for you.
Yea go go back the last three years. Herman has said all kinds of shit about AB, either A) they are like work friends and it's just fun between them, B) they really dislike each other.
not sure what the defamation is. that RT said he took the company twitter account? did they call him a thief or something?
The article spells it out if you bother to read it.
actually it doesn't, because nothing here constitutes any kind of illegal defamation. in this case I guess he is trying to argue libel. Nothing in this whole thing so far has shown RT libeling Bitter, assumptions of what an observer may infer doesn't come close to counting.
So, anything else substantive to this?
further to this, given the general overwhelming response that has come in support of AB from casual observers and other reporters not at RT so far this entire premise seems asinine and easily disproved.
In your opinion it doesn't constitute defamation but that is the case they are trying to make. I'd agree it's probably not the most rock solid reasoning and I'm not sure how it will hold up. Also I wouldn't consider it foolish because it's a standard practice to have some type of counter claim.
yeah precisely, in my opinion, which is the entire basis of their case which is arguing the "casual observer's" inference. And it is foolish if he's wasting his money on a suit that has absolutely no chance of succeeding.
your words man.
maybe try this: https://dictionary.law.com/Default.aspx?selected=1153
Having already read the definition, and reading the one you provided so see if there were any differences, I still think you're wrong.
that's fine agree to disagree. Question though: do you feel RT defamed him and believe Bitter to be dishonest, disloyal, and lacks integrity?
I don't but I was skeptical about the report in question because of the Kyle Tucker tweet. If you look at the other thread I think you'll see some opinions that give some credence to the defamation case. To me it doesn't require much of a logical leap to get there.
Oh I believe Tucker gave him the account, or I suspect that to be true. But that doesn't mean RT is defaming him, which neither of us seem to believe. I think our internet lawyer below is probably right.
This whole thing has made me lose respect for bitter
They sued him first. What are your main justifications?
Get em, Andy. Fight the power!
.... or the RT at least
Internet Lawyer here, but wondering if the Countersuit is more of an attempt simply to get RT to drop the case and let this go.
I agree with some above that it is difficult to come to a logical conclusion that RT is attempting to Defame Mr. Bitter (and would presumably be even more difficult to prove in Court). But sometimes the true "goal" of a Countersuit is to make the other side consider the time and expense involved in defending themselves. Given the overall state of the Newspaper Business, I don't think it's likely that BH Media is swimming in extra cash to spend in Court.
Overall, whether you are a big fan of AB or not, the original suit by RT seemed to largely be an act of retaliation without any real legal merit. The best case for both sides is probably to let this drop and move on.
All of this national media exposure is good for both sides...