On Monday, February 5, 2024, an Oklahoma jury granted a man, Scott Sapulpa, a $25 million verdict. The jury concluded that the state’s prominent newspaper had defamed him by associating him as the announcer responsible for racist remarks. This was during a 2021 girls’ basketball game broadcast, though.
Muskogee County jurors found that Sapulpa deserves $5 million in actual damages and an additional $20 million in punitive damages. Sapulpa’s’ legal team revealed that he encountered threats following the incident.
Lawyer Cassie Barkett stated, “Sapulpa, once a respected teacher and coach, faced a barrage of threats, hate calls, and messages after the story’s publication in other media outlets. This led to his virtual termination from his position.
Barkett added, “The impact extended to Sapulpa’s’ personal life, forcing him to delete all social media accounts as his contact information went viral. This further resulted in harassment.” Barkett continued, “We’re just happy for Scott. Hopefully, this will vindicate his name.”
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Sapulpa claimed defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. According to Barkett, the jury discovered the newspaper acted with actual malice, allowing them to consider punitive damages. In response, Lark-Marie Anton, a spokesperson for the newspaper’s owner, Garnett, expressed disappointment.
Anton asserted that there was no evidence presented to the jury that The Oklahoman acted with any awareness that the report was false. Or with any intention to harm the plaintiff in this case.” The incident happened in 2021 before the Norman-Midwest City girls’ high school basketball game.
During a live stream, an announcer used offensive language and a racial epithet to refer to one team while the players kneeled during the national anthem. The broadcasters informed their listeners on the live stream about a break.
However, unaware that the audio was still live, one expressed, “They are kneeling? (Expletive) them.” He further stated that he hopes Norman kick their asses. Initially, the newspaper mistakenly identified Sapulpa, one of the two announcers, as responsible for the racist comment.
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However, Matt Rowan, the owner and operator of the streaming service, later informed The Oklahoman that he was the one who made the remarks. Rowan apologized and attributed his use of racist language to his blood sugar levels.
Sapulpa would initiate a lawsuit against multiple parties in Oklahoma, holding them accountable for the damage caused. The lawsuit targets Gannett, the newspaper giant owing the The Oklahoman and USA Today, the reporters, Matt Rowan, broadcasters, and even CBS Sports.
The legal action outlines claims of defamation, negligence, and malicious harm, ruining his reputation. Notably, it also accuses Rowan of intentionally allowing Sapulpa to shoulder the blame for a day before confessing.
Conversely, Gannett’s attorney, Bob Nelon, acknowledged the company’s error in identifying Sapulpa and emphasized their prompt correction. He cautioned against imposing high damages, arguing that it could jeopardize smaller community newspapers within the company.
“Newspapers are made up of people, and people make mistakes. Mistakes happen,” Nelon said. “Gannett is made up of people — over 11,000 people. When you punish Gannett, you’re’ punishing all those small-town newspaper editors.”
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