Iain Dale costs Mail “substantial damages” for allegations
by Sunny Hundal
In April leading blogger Iain Dale wrote an article titled ‘Smears, glowering henchmen-like the Nixon White House’ for the Mail on Sunday - alleging not only that Tom Watson MP was copied into the ’smeargate’ emails to Derek Draper, but that he “encouraged” them.
It is of course with great sadness and regret I hear that two of this country’s best-loved media institutions - Associated Newspapers and Iain Dale’s blog - ended up with a massive pie on their faces.
Associated now accepts that these “allegations are entirely untrue”, and had to pay out substantial damages to Tom Watson MP.
This is the same blogger who once said,
If I say something libellous on my blog, I’m responsible for paying my libel bills. And that means there is more of an onus on bloggers to get it right, to not post unsubstantiated rumours…
I guess its easier to get someone else to pay your bills. Bizarrely enough, Iain Dale has so far managed to avoid issuing an apology on his own blog.
Comment: I cannot help wondering why Tom Watson did not also sue Iain Dale? Did the Queen of the blogosphere apologise and beg not to be sued and agreed to interview Tom Watson as part of the out of court settlement?
UPDATE: Press release by Tom Watson
Iain Dale is still silent on not posting on this story and apologising profusely for being caught out lying again!
A mixture of law, politics, autobiography and humour. Once described as "The Devilish Advocate" (Guardian), I do have the ability to provoke a response. Sometimes it comes from someone who uses a thought process, and sometimes from jerks usually associated with the knee.
4 comments:
Although I said that at the time I believe that I was working entirely within the rules, it is the system which is to blame. I have done nothing wrong.
If this sounds somewhat familiar I must apologise.
Mr Dale may have thought he was working within the rules - but as I pointed out repeatedly at the time making allegations without any evidence was a smear and libellous, especially after Tom Watson had made it clear that he denied the allegations, although he then had some problems understanding the denial. He was asked to put up or shut up - he did neither and the libel action was the consequence. In fact he only tried to correct the libel when Guido told him that he was wrong. In this regard there is nothing wrong at all with the libel system.
Has the fee received from Mail been donated to Charity yet?
I refer the honourable gentleman to to the comment I made previously.
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