Judge denies Gawker's motion for new trial vs. Hulk Hogan
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A judge has denied Gawker's motion in a Florida court seeking a new trial in the Hulk Hogan invasion of privacy lawsuit, according to Anna Phillips of the Tampa Bay Times.
Gawker Media requested a new trial after the media company was ordered to pay $140 million in damages to the former professional wrestler. Judge Pamela Campbell did not reduce the damages.
Hogan filed the lawsuit in 2012 after Gawker posted a video of him having sex with his friend's wife without him knowing that he was being filmed. In March, Hogan was awarded $115 million in compensatory damages with an additional $25 million in punitive damages.
Gawker has continued to argue for protection under the First Amendment, saying Hogan’s sex life was of public interest because he openly discussed it in years prior to the tape’s publishing. Earlier this month, Hogan sued Gawker again, this time regarding the leaking of racist audio from his sex tape.
In addition to Gawker, Hogan is also reportedly going after a group of Florida residents for supposedly sending at least one of the sex tape recordings to Gawker. The lawsuit is for undisclosed monetary damages.
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Gawker can still appeal the decision by Judge Campbell to Florida's Second District Court of Appeals.
On Monday, Forbes reported that Peter Thiel, the cofounder of PayPal and an early Facebook investor, was funding Hogan’s lawsuits against Gawker. In 2007, Gawker outed Thiel as a gay man before the billionaire made his sexuality known to the public.
