The hottest and most controversial book of the year! Find out who really controls the media in America. “[Ann Coulter] is never in doubt. And that, along with her bright writing, sense of irony and outrage, and her relish at finally hitting back at political opponents (especially in the media) is what makes Slander such refreshing and provocative reading.” —Los Angeles Times “[Ann Coulter] is a fluent polemicist with a gift for Menckenesque invective . . . and she can harness such language to subtle, syllogistic argument.” —Washington Post Book World “The most popular nonfiction book in America.”—New York Times “The real value of Slander . . . is not in the jokes or devastating exposés of liberal politicians and their allies, but the serious and scholarly study of just how entrenched the media prejudice is against anyone whose politics are even faintly conservative.” —New York Sun “Written with a great deal of passion . . . the real source of its strength—and its usefulness—was its painstaking marshalling of evidence . . . More important than [High Crimes and Misdemeanors] because it addresses a much broader issue, and one of lasting significance.”—National Review

Joseph McCarthy was not yet a household name in 1950 when Owen Lattimore was labeled by the senator from Wisconsin as the “top Russian espionage agent in the country.” Lattimore, in Kabul, Afghanistan, learned about the accusation a week later. Having already lost valuable time to rebut the smear, he succinctly cabled back that the charge was “pure moonshine,” and returned to the United States to defend his good name. He soon dared McCarthy to utter his slander in a venue other than the Senate, where congressional immunity shielded him from lawsuits, but he refused to do so. Following a torturous Senate inquisition, Lattimore published this riveting book which he wrote in white-hot indignation. Judged at the time to be “a masterpiece of factual exposition [and] a social document of first-rate importance,”* this absorbing narrative chronicles how the ordeal threw Lattimore’s life into perilous straits, and how he defended himself, while undermining the credibility of his accusers. In a battle for his very liberty, Lattimore prepared for the equivalent of an alley fight with the brawling senator. His supremely competent wife, Eleanor, was his trusted aide; along with attorney Abe Fortas they drew out of Lattimore’s writings passages that would prove his loyalty. Yet, as a scholar who was accustomed to nuanced interpretations of current affairs, his accusers were able to conflate the same writings into a traitor’s hidden agenda. Ordeal by Slander was the first great book to come out of the McCarthy era, and it remains a supremely topical book for today. “A tremendously stirring, human drama.”—The Atlantic Monthly “A disturbing and illuminating book.”—The New Yorker

Slander has always been a nasty business, Robert Darnton notes, but that is no reason to consider it a topic unworthy of inquiry. By destroying reputations, it has often helped to delegitimize regimes and bring down governments. Nowhere has this been more the case than in eighteenth-century France, when a ragtag group of literary libelers flooded the market with works that purported to expose the wicked behavior of the great. Salacious or seditious, outrageous or hilarious, their books and pamphlets claimed to reveal the secret doings of kings and their mistresses, the lewd and extravagant activities of an unpopular foreign-born queen, and the affairs of aristocrats and men-about-town as they consorted with servants, monks, and dancing masters. These libels often mixed scandal with detailed accounts of contemporary history and current politics. And though they are now largely forgotten, many sold as well as or better than some of the most famous works of the Enlightenment. In The Devil in the Holy Water, Darnton—winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for his Forbidden Best-Sellers of Pre-Revolutionary France and author of his own best-sellers, The Great Cat Massacre and George Washington's False Teeth—offers a startling new perspective on the origins of the French Revolution and the development of a revolutionary political culture in the years after 1789. He opens with an account of the colony of French refugees in London who churned out slanderous attacks on public figures in Versailles and of the secret agents sent over from Paris to squelch them. The libelers were not above extorting money for pretending to destroy the print runs of books they had duped the government agents into believing existed; the agents were not above recognizing the lucrative nature of such activities—and changing sides. As the Revolution gave way to the Terror, Darnton demonstrates, the substance of libels changed while the form remained much the same. With the wit and erudition that has made him one of the world's most eminent historians of eighteenth-century France, he here weaves a tale so full of intrigue that it may seem too extravagant to be true, although all its details can be confirmed in the archives of the French police and diplomatic service. Part detective story, part revolutionary history, The Devil in the Holy Water has much to tell us about the nature of authorship and the book trade, about Grub Street journalism and the shaping of public opinion, and about the important work that scurrilous words have done in many times and places.

In these pages, you'll encounter a thorough examination of defamation attacks, from likely perpetrators and motives to step-by-step instructions on preparing your case for court. This e-book will help you understand how free speech online applies to individuals in defamation cases and will teach you pitfalls to avoid in your own lawsuit (if that's the route taken). By looking at authentic cases to help illustrate potentially positive or negative results, it instructs readers to make educated decisions in their own cases and equips them with knowledge to protect their reputation online. When completed, you will have a well-rounded grasp of defamation law as well as a reliable blueprint for removing defamatory content online and restoring (and upholding) your good reputation.

"If you think you are safe...think again."

Slander and libel cases are largely about how one party uses language in ways that are claimed to defame one another. Linguistic expertise can be central to the case. In The Language of Defamation Cases, Roger W. Shuy describes eleven representative lawsuits--involving newspapers, television stations, religious leaders, physicians, teachers, entertainers, unions, insurance companies, and manufacturers--for which he served as a consultant. Shuy's linguistic analysis illustrates how grammatical referencing, speech acts, discourse structure, framing, conveyed meaning, intentionality, and malicious language affected the outcome of these cases. The Language of Defamation Cases shows how linguistics can be used to help resolve libel and slander cases. It will appeal to students and scholars of applied linguistics and forensic linguistics.

How to Fight for What's Right is a guide for both lawyers and lay people offering guidance through the legal thickets they face when they take on government and business in the courts. This book will meet the needs of environmentalists, civil rights organizations, consumer groups, lawyers, and legal staff of community law clinics--it's the guide that shows citizen groups how to use the legal system to their advantage. First published in 1981, How to Fight for What's Right remains a practical and useful guide to advocacy and the law.

A President on Trial. A Reputation at Stake. Dan Abrams and David Fisher take us inside the courtroom to witness the epic case that would define Theodore Roosevelt's legacy. The former president had accused the leader of the Republican Party of corruption, setting off a trial that caught the attention of the nation. But the key to the trial would be Theodore Roosevelt's own testimony, which would lay bare the very secrets of America's political system.

A fascinating study of how elite white men in eighteenth-century Massachusetts incorporated the ethos of politeness into the law of criminal speech.

Fighting Slander is a book for defamation victims or attorneys:For defamation victims/targets who want to move on with their lives, ending the defamation, leaving behind bad memories and toxic people and the word "victim," moving towards a brighter future with renewed optimism and their reputation restored.Fighting Slander looks at the simplest solutions first, from pretending to ignore it (not talking about it outside of friends and family), to a cease and desist letter (the cheapest legal solution), to erasing defamation from the internet with takedown notices to the website owners - only then does it move into a plain-English description of the legal options if a full lawsuit is necessary, with claims for economic damages and/or emotional distress. (If the solution is legal, act promptly - defamation lawsuits, even simple ones for takedown notices - must generally be filed in as little as 1-2 years.)For attorneys and law firms who rarely see defamation cases, perhaps taking one on for a regular client, or because they are willing to fight the good fight. At 170 pages, Fighting Slander is thorough but digestible, in between the 10-page student guides meant to pass one exam and the 1,600 page practice guides that tell every detail there is to know about defamation law.