Report on Anti-Gay Slur Could Put Local News Site Out of Business
The county board meeting in Wausau, Wis., on Aug. 12, 2021, got contentious fast. Nobody disputes that. But what happened about 12 minutes in, as members of the north-central Wisconsin community squabbled over a resolution intended to promote diversity and inclusion, has become the subject of a bitter legal fight that threatens to bankrupt one of the few remaining sources of local news in the area.
First Amendment experts say the case highlights a troubling trend of wealthy and powerful people using defamation law as retribution.
Acting on a tip from a reader, The Wausau Pilot & Review reported that during the meeting, the owner of a shredding and recycling company, Cory Tomczyk, called a 13-year-old boy a “fag.” Mr.
Tomczyk, who is now a Republican state senator, denied using the slur and demanded a retraction. When The Pilot & Review stood by its article, Mr.
