LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of the case against Matt Jones, the popular Kentucky Sports Radio host who was sued by an NCAA referee.
In an opinion filed Thursday, Judge Jeffrey Sutton said the First Amendment "safeguards the radio station's right to comment on (referee John Higgins') performance and the fans' reaction to it."
Higgins sued the University of Kentucky fan media outlet in October 2017, claiming he and his family were harmed when his personal and business information in Nebraska was shared online and on the radio after the men's basketball team lost to North Carolina in the NCAA tournament that year. As a result, Higgins argued, fans gave his business negative reviews and made threats to him and his loved ones.
Attorneys on behalf of KSR, Jones and co-host Drew Franklin argued they had no contacts in Nebraska and did not target any "activities towards readers or listeners in the state."
"I thank the Court for its ruling and for recognizing that KSR did not engage in any speech not protected by the First Amendment," Jones said in a statement to WDRB News on Thursday. "We look forward to this entire ordeal being behind us.
Sutton argued that Jones and Franklin were protected "even if the station and its hosts might have exercised their First Amendment rights more responsibly.
"One can hardly blame the victim of such onslaughts for wanting redress. Or blame him for taking aim at the only members of the mob with faces: pundits like Jones and like Franklin who at times took too much glee in reporting on the misery of others. But a gulf lies between commenting on harassment and causing it," Sutton wrote.
"And in that respect, the First Amendment protects the rights of sports radio talk show hosts just as it protects the rights of presidents. Those who step into the public limelight, even temporarily, must face the hazard that sometimes comes with it."
Related Stories:
Copyright 2020 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
