WP: Redskins owner Dan Snyder seeks dismissal of City Paper writer (Update: Links to court papers included)

[JimmiJo]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/01/AR2011020105889.html?hpid=moreheadlines

Redskins owner Dan Snyder seeks dismissal of City Paper writer

By Paul Farhi

Washington Post Staff Writer

Tuesday, February 1, 2011; 9:47 PM

There's no question Redskins owner Dan Snyder had a few problems with a cover story about him in Washington's City Paper in November.

At the moment, in fact, Snyder is fighting mad.

Snyder has objected to the article that detailed some of his controversial actions as team owner and other reports about him in the weekly publication, and has threatened legal action against the newspaper. He also is seeking the dismissal of the article's author, staff writer Dave McKenna.

Snyder took his complaints about the Nov. 19 article to Creative Loafing Inc., the Tampa-based company that owns City Paper and five other "alternative" papers around the country, and to CLI's parent, Atalaya Capital Management, a New York-based hedge fund. Atalaya bought CLI for $5 million in a bankruptcy proceeding in August 2009.

In a letter sent to City Paper's owners after the article's publication, Redskins chief operating officer David Donovan alleged that Snyder had been defamed by the publication and that legal action was an option. To date, however, no lawsuit has been filed.

The article, entitled "The Cranky Redskins Fan's Guide to Dan Snyder," detailed dozens of Snyder's actions as team owner and businessman. It recounted such episodes as the controversy surrounding the removal of trees on land adjacent to Snyder's home near the Potomac River and his raising of parking and ticket prices at FedEx Field, the Redskins' home.

Click the link above for the rest of the article...

02/02/11 - 9:15PM

City Paper owner, Atalaya Capital Management, LP, has been served a summons to appear in court in New York to answer a complain being brought by Daniel Snyder, according to a press release from the Redskins. Included in the press release announcing the complaint are exhibits from the Washington City Paper; specifically the art work and story cited in the Washington Post story above.

The summons gives the defendents 20 days to appear from time of being served.

Links:

1 SUMMONS + COMPLAINT <https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/fbem/DocumentDisplayServlet?documentId=tirVQewp3Wt/s2j+6wUb0A==&system=prod">

Summons & Complaint 02/02/2011 08:00 PM

1-1 EXHIBIT(S) <https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/fbem/DocumentDisplayServlet?documentId=tirVQewp3WvJj4J7E1gx1A==&system=prod">

Exhibit A to Complaint 02/02/2011 08:00 PM

1-2 EXHIBIT(S) <https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/fbem/DocumentDisplayServlet?documentId=tirVQewp3WvBPNmfLr1iGA==&system=prod">

Exhibit B to Complaint 02/02/2011 08:00 PM

1-3 EXHIBIT(S) <https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/fbem/DocumentDisplayServlet?documentId=tirVQewp3WvJdTjX/g9YiQ==&system=prod">

Exhibit C to Complaint 02/02/2011 08:00 PM

1-4 EXHIBIT(S) <https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/fbem/DocumentDisplayServlet?documentId=tirVQewp3Ws1eN6FGDX3Pg==&system=prod">

Exhibit D to Complaint 02/02/2011 08:00 PM

[Conn]

An honest question about this: Is there something illegal going on, if Steinberg and McKenna were in fact agreeing to "cross-promote" the article Snyder objects to?

I honestly don't know. I'm not sure what would be unethical about that.

Unless Snyder's lawyers just want to be able to prove, with those e-mails, that there was in fact purposeful negative intent behind that article.

[More Complete]

Dan, winning cures everything.

[Conn]

Dan, winning cures everything.

I doubt it will ever "cure" the rift that exists between the team and the Washington Post. I just don't see it.

That doesn't mean that I necessarily am taking Snyder's "side" here, because I don't know all the facts of the case. I think this is strictly a legal case that we really shouldn't comment on until the verdict...but this thread will morph into something else entirely, and become a pro-Snyder vs. anti-Snyder war. When that shouldn't be what its about.

[Madison Redskin]

Does Dan realize that when he does **** like this, he is creating yet another story for people to talk about on the net? As a guy who made billions, it is surprising that he sucks at figuring out how to dig himself of the PR **** hole that he dug for himself. He is his own worst nightmare.

[RFKFedEx]

Stories like these make liking Snyder all the more difficult. It's the little things like this that help us suck on the field. It has a karmic effect on the entire franchise.

[Atlanta Skins Fan]

In a letter sent to City Paper's owners after the article's publication, Redskins chief operating officer David Donovan alleged that Snyder had been defamed by the publication and that legal action was an option. To date, however, no lawsuit has been filed.

First, defamation normally requires that the material be false. What's false about McKenna's piece?

Second, Dan Snyder is a public figure. Courts give wide first amendment leeway to negative characterizations of public figures, even when false. The Supreme Court sided with Hustler magazine, in an 8-0 decision, defending its right to publish this portrayal of Jerry Falwell's "first time" with Mom in an outhouse while both were "drunk off our God-fearing asses on Campari."

If that's legal, Snyder can't touch McKenna or the publisher through the courts.

This is simply an attempt to bully the press. It also shows him to be thin-skinned, because this piece ran in November, and he's dredging it up again. I think most people had forgotten it by now.

Dan Snyder should remember that living well is the best revenge. Short of that, own a winning football team. And stop doing things that get you written up in this way by McKenna.

P.S. Trying to get McKenna fired just gets another entry in the list of things that make you look like a prick.

-----------------

Edit one day later:

In the spirit of fairness, here is the actual letter of complaint sent by David Donovan on November 24.

Since that letter was sent shortly after the article appeared, obviously this has been brewing for a while. Therefore my comment about "dredging it up again" was unfounded. Dan Snyder went after the author and the publisher immediately, through Donovan.

As to the merit of the complaints, I'm in no position to judge. I will say that when I read the original article, most of the items chronicled were familiar to me separately, having been reported elsewhere. A person tends not to accumulate such a litany of unflattering stories without many of them being true, and some of these things we witnessed right in front of us. Arguing that a smattering of this stuff isn't true or is out of bounds misses the point.

[zoony]

ASF's post is correct. Any differing opinion on this is incorrect. That is all

[tr1]

Dan needs to get his ego in check.

Granted, the media likes to needle him, but this looks bratty.

[RFKFedEx]

McKenna 1

Danny Epic Fail

[psu2008]

What a baby. Snyder is such a goob

[Sawyer5500]

I just hope the national media doesn't pick up on this...im tired of all the negative publicity this team gets.

[HailGreen28]

I remember the "cranky" article. Hell I've REFERENCED to it during discussions here.

Yeah truth should be a immunity against libel or whatever Danny's trying.

Hey Danny, if you want people to stop criticizing you for doing dumb things, the first thing you should do is..............

[Jimbo]

Come on Danny, do it like the moguls of old. Buy the damn paper and fire him yourself.

[Truant]

It's comical how the media truly controls the masses. It's easy to understand Snyder's beef with the press when you see how many folks assume they know all the facts and make sweeping judgments about things they don't research themselves.

As mentioned above, the problem is not winning enough. It takes a terribly small sac to attack Snyder after that Eagles Monday Night game. The author should least have the brains to fact check, if not the professional integrity.

Snyder has done countless charity activities. He made use of his personal jet to fly players cross country to visit a former player when they lost their child.

It's easy to cite someone's accolades and mistakes, but I suppose it's even easier to do it inaccurately. Personally I hope Danny sues the pants off the paper and gets this hack fired. He'd do better on a blog or as a fiction writer anyhow.

[hieverybody]

Snyder is a festering embarrassment.

[SMOSS89]

It's ironic that with Dan Snyder trying to "repair" his image like this, he is only further damaging it and fueling the fire that McKenna started.

Like other mentioned, if he starts winning, this won't be a problem.

[SkinsFTW]

Damn, should I really care about being a fan of this team anymore?

I mean, the owner is going to run it into the ground no matter what.

[Bibby]

He is his own worst nightmare.

- This is so true. Dan doesn't have good people skills and really is in the wrong business where he is in the public eye.

[SkinsFTW]

It's comical how the media truly controls the masses. It's easy to understand Snyder's beef with the press when you see how many folks assume they know all the facts and make sweeping judgments about things they don't research themselves.

Of course, things would be much more clear if he'd give football people 100% control of the process and not be mentioned as a partner in any decision on draft picks, trades, and signings, but we all know he's right there, clueless and still at least 1/2 of the factor in every decision made.

Snyder is a MORON for even trying to act like he's being treated badly. Remember his first speach on air? I can find a link and today, it's hilarious.

[Conn]

but we all know he's right there, clueless and still at least 1/2 of the factor in every decision made.

We do? That's interesting, I must have missed that.

[SkinsFTW]

We do? That's interesting, I must have missed that.

Well he did hire Allen, right?

Didn't he work for Al Davis before coming here? Didn't he work for the Glazers in Tampa too? Need a clue?

Is there an /IMG for a front office hand puppet?

I didn't think so.

(By the way, I'm not always contrary, I've just been contrary to everything Dan Snyder has done since he fired Marty Schottenheimer 10 years ago for no reason when it was obvious that he was building a winner from nothing, other than hiring Gibbs back, and in fact that was more than less a marketing scheme as well. Think of the things that would make the Redskins winners, then think of what would make a splash whether or not we win and DS goes for the splash every time, guaranteed.) Marketing will always trump a winning team in DC as long as DS owns the Redskins, don't act as if this is news, we've all seen it for 10+ years now.)

[Conn]

Well he did hire Allen, right?

Didn't he work for Al Davis before coming here? Didn't he work for the Glazers in Tampa too? Need a clue?

Is there an /IMG for a front office hand puppet?

I didn't think so.

He also hired Shanahan, who has much too large an ego to let Snyder influence anything at all. And who didn't need the money to come into a situation he didn't like.

Use your head. Snyder isn't being consulted about anything.

So if Allen is anyone's "yes man", its Shanahan's.

Because when he worked for Davis, Davis was a competent GM. And when he worked for the cheap-ass Glazers, it was Gruden who had final say on football decisions.

Basically, nothing that you said has anything to do with an Allen-owner relationship. It's all about the Allen-coach dynamic...which has nothing to do with this.

Nice try.

[jflow78]

It's like you're a fortune teller Conn, the war has already begun.

Anyway, I'm interested to see the lawsuit that comes up. I have no doubt that, with all the negative written about Snyder, some of it has to be questionable. At least questionable enough to make a smaller newspaper go bankrupt trying to defend their case.

I'm fairly sure, if only for financial reasons, there's no way they can win this. They'll either run out of money, or settle first. It's interesting though, it will definitely make other news sources think twice before publishing completely negative articles about the guy. Especially since he really hasn't done anything wrong this season.

People are constantly complaining about the guy, but the truth is, we really don't know what's happened in the FO for the last 7 years. Gibbs seemed very in control, Vinny seemed very in control, now Shanahan seems very in control. We really have no proof that Snyder has had much of anything to do with FO decisions for a long time, yet people are still insistent even this year that every bad decision is Snyders and every good decision is (fill in the coach's name).

[Barney B]

It's comical how the media truly controls the masses. It's easy to understand Snyder's beef with the press when you see how many folks assume they know all the facts and make sweeping judgments about things they don't research themselves.

...It's easy to cite someone's accolades and mistakes, but I suppose it's even easier to do it inaccurately. Personally I hope Danny sues the pants off the paper and gets this hack fired. He'd do better on a blog or as a fiction writer anyhow.

If McKenna's writings aren't true, then it's a good thing you showed up to set the record straight.

It sounds like you've done all the necessary research, so I hope you won't mind telling us exactly what he wrote that would lead to a successful lawsuit by Snyder?