New York Times loses defamation suit, ordered to pay $9.25M to former Alabama basketball player

The New York Times has been ordered to pay $9.25 million in damages after an Alabama jury ruled the newspaper defamed former college basketball player Kai Spears. Spears was mistakenly identified in a 2023 report as being present at the scene of a fatal shooting. The Times issued an editor’s note acknowledging the error after Spears filed his lawsuit, but the jury found the reporting defamatory.

• The New York Times lost a defamation lawsuit brought by former college basketball player Kai Spears.
• An Alabama jury awarded Spears $9.25 million in damages.
• The lawsuit stemmed from a March 2023 report that falsely identified Spears as a passenger in a car at the scene of a fatal shooting.
• The Times issued an editor’s note in June 2023 acknowledging the misidentification and stating the person present was Cooper Lee, a student manager.
• The newspaper relied on an anonymous source for the initial reporting, and the sportswriter conceded the story contained a mistake.