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Hulk Hogan attempts to smash Gawker in privacy brawl

While we’re a tech site, and things like celebrities suing tabloids isn’t our thing, privacy very much is.

So when former wrestler Hulk Hogan announces he’s going after gossip-blog Gawker for violating his privacy, and the resulting court case – should it go his way – has definite implications for US privacy laws that govern what can and cannot be published about celebrities, we sit up and take notice.

So here’s the skinny: according to Australian news site News.com.au Hogan is suing gossip-blog Gawker, as he’s upset over the site’s decision to publish a video of him having carnal relations with his friend’s wife back in 2012. The footage was captured by security cameras without his knowledge.

For publishing a 30-minute “highlight reel” of the event, Hogan reportedly wants $100 million in damages (R1.2 billion), a cash figure that Gawker’s founder, Nick Denton, says the site just doesn’t have.

Should Hogan win, the result will disrupt what is essentially an “anything goes” attitude among online publishers when it comes to making public this sort of celebrity-focused material, Gawker’s lawyer said.

Totally understandable, too, as that sort of punitive figure is more than enough to give any editor pause.

Both parties enter the (legal) ring on the 6th July to determine a winner. The trial will put an end to the back and forth that’s been going on between the parties since the trouble started back in 2012; we’ll certainly be watching with interest.

[Source – News.com.au, Image via Wikimedia]

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