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> In 2003 Vice reached a $25,000 settlement with the freelance writer Jessica Hopper. The deal involved defamation claims tied to an interview she did with the
by provost 9y ago
> In 2003 Vice reached a $25,000 settlement with the freelance writer Jessica Hopper. The deal involved defamation claims tied to an interview she did with the rapper Murs that was published in the February 2003 issue of the magazine, according to a copy of the agreement viewed by The Times. During the interview, Murs asked Ms. Hopper if he could have sex with her. She said no and included that answer in her article.
> But before the article was published, the magazine changed her response to yes and printed it under the headline, “I Got Laid But Murs Didn’t.”
> Mortified, Ms. Hopper hired lawyers. The two sides struck a settlement that, in addition to a payout, required Vice to print a retraction and a formal apology.
Wow. I feel so poorly for Ms. Hopper. They defamed her and shamed her, yet a $25,000 settlement likely only paid for her lawyers. Disgusting -- they should feel ashamed.
- pwaai 9y agoI hope that she can get the appropriate justice. $25,000 is a pittance compared to the psychological trauma from having to relive the trauma over and over from being discussed. I mean, fuck man, why even become a lawyer if you are going to achieve such poor results? But I guess when you can't afford the same lawyers a large corporation can, its going to be an uphill battle. Especially now when the US courts is trending towards less class action lawsuits. When all goes wrong you are supposed to be able to count on the law. Seems like a pretty big asterisk is needed there.
- nyolfen 9y agohumiliation surely, but 'trauma' sounds like a truly extreme stretch
- lemagedurage 9y agoIf you donate $25K to the EFF, HN can tell everyone I agreed on sex. Odd, isn't it?
- gt_ 9y agoDisgusting. I hate how easy it is for me to remember this culture in that time. I did not readily realize it but Shock was the name of the game. The original hipster was a coked out liar who spoke in what we now call youtube comments. At the time, it was shocking and cool. Working in these environments was very awkward for me and I couldn’t imagine what it was like for females. I was driven by the intellectual and creative bent but had to face the reality that it was was far from that. It was a culture that favored shock over honesty and this the story exemplifies it well. I do not understand, however, how the settlement turned out so poorly for her. I would guess it’s just a matter of affording good attorneys?
- WillPostForFood 9y agoInteresting that the behavior by Murs goes I commented on and uncriticized in the article. It is in the realm of bad behavior (asking a reporter “can we xxxx”). I suspect it is a lot more comfortable to critique white corporate culture than black rap culture, even though the later is deeply misogynistic.
- jameskegel 9y agoI’m not sure what this has to do with his racial identity; I feel the same way about his behavior regardless.
- WillPostForFood 9y agoRap culture is extremely misogynistic - it is a weird form of denial to deny the racial aspect.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- flunhat 9y agoUnsure why you're bringing race into this, but the article was about Vice not about Murs so it makes sense that they focus on the former more than the latter (even though both are bad, of course)
- WillPostForFood 9y agoMurs was a key figure in the article - his vulgar proposition was the inciting event.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- provost 9y agoI'll criticize Murs as well -- his behavior is also disgusting. However, please leave racial comments out of this.
- bogomipz 9y agoI was shocked by that figure as well. All I can think is that since they pay people peanuts that may have sounded like an impressive settlement figure to someone.
- alexasmyths 9y ago"Disgusting -- they should feel ashamed." This is VICE's standard operating procedure. 'Voice of a Generation'
- frankzinger 9y agoLet's not forget that they changed the interviewer's words to mean the exact opposite. Even though they could hardly have been considered a serious news organisation at that time, who wants to read an interview in which answers were changed so drastically?