

The unsealed documents will undoubtedly be key in Gawker's appeals process. There was wrestling history, videos of Hogan yukking it up with Howard Stern and, most notably, how Gawker - a 12-year-old news and gossip website in New York City- does journalism differently from legacy media. Jurors, media and thousands who followed the case on Twitter and livestream video were treated to days of details about Hogan's sex life, body part size, and images of him in thong underwear. The verdict and the unsealing of hundreds of pages of documents late in the day capped a three week judicial circus in the sleepy St. "It could potentially be a turning point in law."
#GAWKER HULK HOGAN TAPE TRIAL FREE#
"It's a huge damage award, and just the idea that a celebrity has a right to privacy that outweighs freedom of the press and the public's right to know, that's a huge shift in American free press law," said Samantha Barbas, a law professor at the University at Buffalo and the author of "The Laws of Image," which focuses on the history of libel and privacy. Hogan contended the 2012 post violated his privacy.įirst Amendment experts, media lawyers and privacy advocates watched the case closely. Hogan, whose given name is Terry Bollea, sued Gawker for $100 million for posting a video of him having sex with his former best friend's wife. We think it represents a statement as to the public's disgust with the invasion of privacy disguised as journalism. Hogan's team issued a statement as well: "We're exceptionally happy with the verdict.

"Given the key evidence and the most important witness in this case were withheld from the jury, we all knew the appeals court would need to resolve this case," Denton said. Just moments after the verdict, Gawker founder Nick Denton said he will appeal, based on evidence that wasn't introduced in court. The jury isn't finished they will return to court Monday to award punitive damages beyond Friday's sum.
#GAWKER HULK HOGAN TAPE TRIAL TRIAL#
The trial lasted two weeks, and Hogan wept as the verdict was read. The jurors reached the decision Friday evening, less than six hours after they began deliberations. PETERSBURG - A Florida jury sided with ex-pro wrestler Hulk Hogan and awarded him $115 million in his sex tape lawsuit against Gawker Media.
