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Hulk Hogan wins $115M in Gawker sex tape case.


Pong Messiah
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Hulk Hogan awarded $115 million in privacy suit against Gawker

 

Never much cared for Hulk Hogan as a kid. Didn't hate Hogan like, say, Ted DiBiase (though in retrospect, that's what made DiBiase great lol), just thought his moves were repetitive and clumsy, and his persona uninteresting; I came to actively dislike him as an adult for various reasons, but that is neither here nor there -- what is more important is that I straight up loathe Gawker and Gawker media.

 

$55 million for economic harm and $60 million for emotional distress. Wow. Too much? Too little? "Chilling"? Goldilocks?

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Guest El Chalupacabra

Good, now Hulk Hogan can pay the family of John Graziano, who is the kid Nick Hogan, crippled and turned into a vegetable while driving drunk.

 

I hate any tabloid paper, TV show, or website, so I am not sad when they lose lawsuits, but Hulk Hogan is probably the least-deserving scum bag for that kind of money. I really hope the family of John Graziano now sues Hogan.

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The meaning of the verdict will not be clear for some time. But the perception that a Manhattan media company, noted for its wry tone and its insistence that nearly any topic is fair game, was brought low by a celebrity fighting for privacy is most likely to resonate widely across the industry.

This is going to be the interesting thing about it all. The long term impact this will have on internet journalism. I can't see it getting any worse. I don't see how this whole clickbait model of journalism could possibly be worsened any more than it already is.

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$55 million for economic harm and $60 million for emotional distress. Wow. Too much? Too little? "Chilling"? Goldilocks?

 

They still need to decide on punitive damages. So it may be more.

 

In honesty, I suspect this gets overturned on appeal. I'm having difficulty figuring out how Gawker isn't protected by the 1st Amendment here. As much as I'd like for people's privacy to be protected, particularly in hidden recordings designed to embarrass them, and how much I morally agree with the award, in the end the 1st Amendment is more important.

 

I mean, I'd love for TMZ to be taken out of business (using this as a precedent, Donald Sterling could end up owning them) along with all the other trashy magazines and internet sites, I just don't think they can.

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I don't know who is more garbage, Gawker or Hogan.

Gawker. By quite a bit.

Could not agree more.

 

Hulk Hogan was selfish, egotistical, screwed over co-workers to get/stay ahead, was lacking in grace and in his estimation of his own limitations. There is a reason so many people who worked with him can't stand him, and it's not just "professional jealousy." In his private life, he coveted his neighbor's wife, made racist comments, and bailed his kid out of hot water after doing incredibly irresponsible things that would have gotten anybody without money or influence into way more trouble. And I haven't ever seen his reality TV show, but imagine I could mine that for several more gems.

 

But the above just makes him a bad guy like half the people you work with are probably "bad guys" -- it was just on a larger and far more public scale. We hate him because it is so much clearer to see with Hogan than with Bob from accounting, and in many cases because we're righteously angry the "squeaky clean" Hogan made out like a ****ing bandit. People actually ate his bull**** up. But I'm sorry, if you believed you could bone your friend's attractive wife with zero consequences, you are probably doing it right now. And every parent in the ****ing world says their kid will have to take responsibility and face the music for what they do... until their kid actually does something truly horrible and irresponsible, in which case all "tough love" goes out the window and they do everything in their power to help their child. I'm sorry, but if you think you are better than that, you probably just haven't had the opportunity.

 

Hulk Hogan is a walking character flaw and it is perfectly OK to hate him for that and the fact that this clumsy, predictable, undeserving dickwad somehow managed to profit so greatly while preventing others from reaching to the top. It's OK to hate him for being a racist, and it's OK to judge him for his personal behavior (though as stated, I don't believe you are not banging your friend's wife and going to bat for your horrible child when the opportunity presents itself). But Gawker is more than a character flaw; Gawker isn't just an entitled douche with the moral and cultural compass of a child. People like Hulk Hogan are symptoms of cultural and intellectual decline, but Gawker is one of the causes. They actually try to be horrible, which takes a hell of a lot more work than simply being a washed-up, over-privileged sports entertainment icon doing washed-up, over-privileged sports entertainment icon things.

 

Hate the syphilis, not the chancre.

 

OK, hate them both. A lot. Chancres are gross. But don't act like they are equivalent; hate the syphilis more. That's what I mean.

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Guest El Chalupacabra

 

I don't know who is more garbage, Gawker or Hogan.

 

Gawker. By quite a bit.

 

Ridiculous. Neither is better than the other. They are just different types of scum. It's like saying horse sh*t is less stinky than bull sh*t.

 

I have no problem if Gawker is bankrupted in a court ruling, but I do have a problem if Hulk Hogan is the beneficiary. It may be the law, but how someone could applaud Hogan becoming a millionaire 115 times over, given his history, is disgusting.

 

If there were such a thing as justice in the world, which I think there is no such thing, whatever court presided over the John Graziano settlement would just confiscate whatever money Hogan ultimately wins after all appeals are exhausted, and give it to the family of John Graziano. That would really be the only happy ending in this case.

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If the court decided to circumvent a settlement, so far after agreeing to it, that wouldn't be justice at all. That would be a complete injustice to everyone who has ever trusted the court system.

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and give it to the family of John Graziano.

 

Let's be honest, there were a lot of bad choices made by both of them that led to that tragedy. Nobody made Graziano not wear a seatbelt while an underage driver sped through the streets on a wet day.

 

All things considered, I don't even think the punishment was all that lenient. I'm no expert, but eyeballing the sentence, it's about what I'd expect for an underage kid responsible for an accident that maims his passenger. The only consideration is how the alcohol in his system (well below legal limits for an adult, but illegal for a juvenile to have basically anything) generally adds to the crime.

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Let's be honest, there were a lot of bad choices made by both of them that led to that tragedy. Nobody made Graziano not wear a seatbelt while an underage driver sped through the streets on a wet day.

 

All things considered, I don't even think the punishment was all that lenient. I'm no expert, but eyeballing the sentence, it's about what I'd expect for an underage kid responsible for an accident that maims his passenger. The only consideration is how the alcohol in his system (well below legal limits for an adult, but illegal for a juvenile to have basically anything) generally adds to the crime.

Agreed that both parties made bad choices; not sure about the punishment (different states, different rules, etc.). Some of the recordings that surfaced later showed Nick Hogan to be something of a backstabbing twerp, but it's not like it is illegal to be an asshole. And somebody correct me if I am wrong about this (maybe it is a matter of public record I'm just not aware of), but I would also imagine that there are already some private deals between both families regarding compensation, medical care, etc.?

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There's already a settlement, from what I've been able to see, that addresses all of this. And I'm sure there were insurance companies involved.

 

There's no doubt this is a high value claim, but it certainly isn't a $115 million dollar claim, and even less $115 million plus whatever else he's already gotten.

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I'd wager that, all things being equal, Graziano probably could go as high as $15-$20 million, since there is celebrity involved. A reasoned argument would put him 5-10% at fault for his injuries as he didn't act prudently. Potentially higher, up to 100%, if he knew the kid was drinking.

 

If an average person was driving, the max would probably be about $1 million, if the person had a personal liability umbrella policy. Otherwise, you'd likely max out somewhere between $100k and $500k, depending on the location and policy of the individual.

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Guest El Chalupacabra

 

Let's be honest, there were a lot of bad choices made by both of them that led to that tragedy. Nobody made Graziano not wear a seatbelt while an underage driver sped through the streets on a wet day.

 

All things considered, I don't even think the punishment was all that lenient. I'm no expert, but eyeballing the sentence, it's about what I'd expect for an underage kid responsible for an accident that maims his passenger. The only consideration is how the alcohol in his system (well below legal limits for an adult, but illegal for a juvenile to have basically anything) generally adds to the crime.

Agreed that both parties made bad choices; not sure about the punishment (different states, different rules, etc.). Some of the recordings that surfaced later showed Nick Hogan to be something of a backstabbing twerp, but it's not like it is illegal to be an ***hole. And somebody correct me if I am wrong about this (maybe it is a matter of public record I'm just not aware of), but I would also imagine that there are already some private deals between both families regarding compensation, medical care, etc.?

 

So, good to know both of you support double standard justice for the rich and famous, then? Had Nick Hogan been some nobody, he would have done hard prison time. Felony drunk driving that resulted in someone becoming a vegetable. Someone who somehow survived a war, and now lives as a daily burden with his mother, in 1 bedroom apartment. The reality is that Nick Hogan was both a minor, and also responsible for any passengers in his car, and the fact said passenger was under or over the age of 18 is immaterial. It's also a fact because Nick Hogan was a minor, even if he was a hair away from 18, still means that both his parents are legally and morally responsible for his actions.

 

Now I am going to admit my bias here: my best friend was killed by a drunk driver, and my own brother was nearly killed and suffers from back pain to the day (20+ years later) after being hit by a drunk driver. Also, I had seen a very similar case to the Nick Hogan case not long after high school (involved students from a neighboring high school, but same social circle and I remember it well because it involved friends of mine who were at this party and knew the people involved here): two kids coming back from a high school party, the driver was 17, the passenger 18. Both were drunk, and riding in an Iroc-Z. The driver was racing another car, spun out of control, and into a brick wall. The driver walked away relatively unscathed, whereas the passenger broke his neck, and spent the rest of his days like Christopher Reeve (he died some 3 or 4 years later). I am not sure of the exact settlement, but it was enough that the family of the victim successfully sued and literally bankrupted the family of the driver for the round the clock care the victim required. Also the driver was prosecuted as an adult, and served time in prison. I can't remember the exact time, but I seem to remember it being something like 2 years.

 

Anyway, this was tragic on both sides. Was the outcome fair? I think so, as sad as it was, because someone had to be held accountable. I'm sure the victim and his family would have given anything for this not to happen. I am sure the driver and his family would have, too: two lives ruined, with two families financially ruined, because no matter the settlement, there are a lot of hidden costs, both financially and emotionally.

 

Now we didn't see this with the Hogan family. I think I remember a settlement being reached for $5 million, for the victim alone. But over a lifetime,that is a drop in the bucket to pay for the care of someone like this.

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Also I seem to remember is coincidentally, Hogan's divoce happened at the same time. Much speculation went on as to whether this was a ploy to divide or hide assets to avoid payment. The divorce was revealed to be genuine so that may not have been the primary motivation, but it's interesting that the Hogans, even divorced, still live in relative luxury.

 

And now Hogan is being awarded $112 million more, for basically the Gawker illegally showcasing his doucheyness? Like I said, I have no problem with lawsuits against tabloids like Gawker, but with Hogan getting that kind of money, and not using some of it to take care of this victim of his son's idiocy, as well as compensate the victims family for the time and effort they have to provide for their son, then that is the ultimate in D-baggery.

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So, good to know both of you support double standard justice for the rich and famous, then? Had Nick Hogan been some nobody, he would have done hard prison time.

 

He was sentenced to 8 months and served 5.5 months at an adult facility (in solitary until her turned 18). That really doesn't strike me as abnormal. I'm open to the possibility that I'm wrong, but I don't know much about what the average Florida penalty for a sub-homicide underage car crash with minor alcohol involvement.

 

But even in comparison of the two years you think your example got, it's doesn't sound that far off.

 

 

And now Hogan is being awarded $112 million more, for basically the Gawker illegally showcasing his doucheyness?

 

Well, yeah, in that case it does sound terrible. However, when we're talking about economic damages, Hogan simply makes a lot more money than a former Marine can be expected to. So rich people actually are worth more money in cases such as these simply on a basis of the actual damages being higher.

 

Put simply, you make it so that Lebron James wins a case where he loses 1/50 of his future earnings due to somebody's negligence, that comes out to be a lot more in real damages than you or I would get if a jury decides is someone runs us over in the street and then dances on top of us. We just wouldn't produce as much revenue, so the loss of income wouldn't be as high.

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There's already a settlement, from what I've been able to see, that addresses all of this. And I'm sure there were insurance companies involved.

Fozzie, where are you getting the info? I read that it was settled privately and haven't been able to find any details.

 

So, good to know both of you support double standard justice for the rich and famous, then?

Uh, if "Pong supports double standard justice" is what you are getting from my posts, I'm not sure what I can do to help.

 

And now Hogan is being awarded $112 million more, for basically the Gawker illegally showcasing his doucheyness? Like I said, I have no problem with lawsuits against tabloids like Gawker, but with Hogan getting that kind of money, and not using some of it to take care of this victim of his son's idiocy, as well as compensate the victims family for the time and effort they have to provide for their son, then that is the ultimate in D-baggery.

But if the settlement is private, how do we know Hogan is not already paying a boatload of money to the victim's family? Again, this isn't a case I followed very closely, but I though the original settlement was reached in an effort to avoid a lawsuit with a Gawker level lawsuit?

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