You'd think, right? Wired: Vox: Reason: Paul Carr has been making the point that you can hate both Gawker and the fact that Peter Thiel blew it up.At its worst, Gawker published articles with seemingly little news value, like its purported outing of a Condé Nast executive (Condé Nast is WIRED’s parent company). At its best, Gawker punched up with a vengeance, holding powerful public figures and institutions accountable.
Gawker isn't the only publication to be targeted by a disgruntled billionaire. Last year, the liberal magazine Mother Jones defeated a defamation lawsuit filed by Republican donor Frank VanderSloot. Winning the lawsuit cost Mother Jones, a relatively small nonprofit organization, and its insurance company $2.5 million in legal fees.
Nothwithstanding his protestations, Thiel certainly is trying to draw a line by supporting Bollea's lawsuit and offering to help other litigants who believe their privacy has been violated by the press. "I will support him until his final victory," Thiel writes, noting that Gawker plans to appeal the verdict against it, "and I would gladly support someone else in the same position." Thiel's choice of cases will tell journalists where he thinks the line should be, and this is no mere suggestion. Although he tries to blur the distinction between criticizing someone and taking him to court, only one involves the use of force and the threat of bankruptcy.