A Thornton In The Daily Telegraph's Side: Libel And Malicious Falsehood Claim Succeeds

In one of the first findings of malice by a literary critic in many years, the High Court has upheld Dr Sarah Thornton's claim for libel and malicious falsehood against Telegraph Media Group. Lynn Barber's highly critical review of Thornton's book, Seven Days in the Art World, published in the Daily Telegraph, contained in particular two statements alleged by Thornton to be false and defamatory. The Court found that Barber either knew that these statements were false, or was recklessly indifferent as to their veracity, thereby defeating a defence based on an offer of amends which Thornton did not accept. The Court awarded Thornton £65,000 in damages, as well as payment of her legal costs.

The defamatory review

Thornton's book, Seven Days in the Art World, included an acknowledgement setting out the names of persons she had interviewed in writing her book, including Lynn Barber. In her review of the book for the Daily Telegraph published on 1 November 2008, Barber denied having been interviewed, stating, "I gave her an interview? Surely I would have noticed?" This became the subject of the libel claim. Barber's review also stated that Thornton practises "'reflexive ethnography', which means that her interviewees have the right to read what she says about them and alter it. In journalism we call this 'copy approval' and disapprove." This became the subject of the claim for malicious falsehood. Soon after reading the review, Thornton contacted Barber and subsequently the Daily Telegraph in order to set records straight and requesting an apology. Thornton had in fact interviewed Barber, and this was evidenced by an extensive email chain between the two writers, by contemporaneous notes Thornton had taken during the interview, and by Barber's own diary, in which she had written "New Yorker journo who has been pursuing me for weeks rang about the Turner Prize and I was mildly helpful but snotty." Furthermore, there was no evidence to suggest that Thornton allowed any right of copy approval. On 3 April 3009, the Daily Telegraph made a qualified offer of amends in respect of the allegation concerning the absence of an interview. Thornton did not accept this, as she was convinced at this point in time that Barber had in fact known that her allegations were false, and that she sought to discredit the book because it also contained a critical portrayal of Barber. Some ten months after Barber's review had been published, and after repeated requests...