Turkel also brought up a Playboy interview with Denton, who told the magazine that “every infringement of privacy is sort of liberating”.
Advertisement
Hogan’s attorneys asked Denton, a high-profile figure in the world of Web publishing, to read aloud a very explicit article accompanying the video, which he did in an even tone.
Hulk Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, is suing Gawker Media for the publication of a sex tape involving the former wrestler.
Under cross examination, Hogan’s attorney tried to show Denton was callous and heartless, and never considered how posting the video and story would affect Bollea or his family.
Gawker initially refused to remove the video from its site, and the author of the article, AJ Daulerio, said in a deposition that came to bear on trial proceedings last week that celebrity sex tapes would not be newsworthy only if they involved children younger than four (Daulerio has said he was being sarcastic and that he regrets it). He made a contrast between an American icon and the man behind the icon. “I’d hope I do the right thing”, he said, without specifying exactly what that meant.
“The Internet is a hybrid of television and print”, responded Denton. “It was a story honestly told and it was interesting to millions of people”. “If you are trying to communicate to a modern audience, pictures are essential”.
The final cut featured nine seconds of actual sex, he said, to confirm the encounter. She has absolute discretion over whether any question is asked, and in her opinion, it was perfectly reasonable to ask a 28-year-old woman if she’d slept with either of her bosses, in a trial alleging, as a tort, invasion of privacy.
“But I think viewed as a whole, the piece was newsworthy, it was of interest to our readership”.
Attorneys for Hulk Hogan had another chance Tuesday to portray Gawker Media as both prurient and harmful. At times, Turkel attempted to ridicule Denton. Gizmodo obtained the prototype for $5,000 after it had apparently been left behind at a bar. Mr. Turkel asked if the scoop was simply writing about “stolen property”.
“You can see it that way if you want”, Denton responded.
“I think celebrities have a smaller zone of privacy than private individuals”, Denton said. “I appreciate that not everyone shares my view”. Denton parried the aggressive questioning. The former wrestler has said he didn’t know he was being filmed when the video was made.
The lawsuit centers on the one-minute, 41-seconds of video that Gawker excerpted from the sex tape of unknown origin.
Tuesday, the owner of Gawker, Nick Denton took the stand and gave no apologies.
Gawker’s editorial process has been an issue in the trial.
But Denton ultimately remained undecided on whether he’d post a video that could be called “Behind the White (House) Door”.
“Yes, having sex in a private bedroom with a friend”, Turkel fired back, his voice booming throughout the courtroom.
Advertisement
Denton answered, “Yes, probably”.
