Wisconsin Democrats are trying to prohibit the use of expensive, sham lawsuits to deter criticism by news outlets and members of the public.
“He knows we’re a small news organization. He knows we don’t have deep pockets and that continuing to fight this lawsuit is very damaging to us financially and could shut us down,” she said.
The Wausau Pilot & Review’s four-person newsroom has an annual budget of roughly $185,000, according to Siewert. Mounting legal expenses have already forced the news site to put off plans to hire an additional reporter. The burden has only begun to ease in the past week after the news site’s story gained national attention and a GoFundMe page brought in roughly $100,000 in contributions.
“It takes a lot of stamina to stand up against this type of political coercion,” bill sponsor Senate Minority Leader Melissa Agard said. “Even if the suit is not viable, which is the case with Sen. Tomczyk’s lawsuit, the cost and the stress associated with these frivolous, lengthy litigation processes are oftentimes enough to create chilling effects.”strategic lawsuits against public participation
“This is long overdue,” Siewert said. “I’m incredibly grateful that this legislation is being proposed to protect journalists and small news organizations like ours in the future.”
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