You can sue for damages from libel, but you need to be able to prove to the court that the offender actually knew what they were saying was wrong. It's not qui

You can sue for damages from libel, but you need to be able to prove to the court that the offender actually knew what they were saying was wrong. It's not quite that simple. US libel law recognizes two classes of people: public figures and private citizens. Both classes of people have to demonstrate that the claim is false. Hence my high school journalism teacher's repeated phrase, "The best defense in a libel case is the truth." For private citizens, a false claim is enough for libel. For public figures, it is not. Public figures have to prove malice. That is, the defendants knew that the statement was untrue, and said it for the purpose of causing harm. That's a very high bar.