Hulk Hogan, the American star of the wrestling and entertainment that died on Thursday (24) at the age of 71, had his trajectory marked by a judicial battle against Gawker Media, made up of various media vehicles, including news sites in the United States.
In 2016, one of the network’s pages released a hogan video having consensual sex with a woman.
After the recording leakage, the star sued Gawker. He had the support of a billionaire who had declared war on the group. The network was ordered to pay an indemnity of US $ 140 million (R $ 773 million in the current price) to Hogan – a deal made later reduced this amount to $ 31 million (R $ 171 million).
The conviction led the company to the Concordat. The Gawker website portfolio, which included Gizmodo, Jezebel and Deadspin, was sold to Univision Communications for $ 135 million ($ 745 million in the current price), except for the main site, Gawker.com, which closed its doors.
Hogan’s process represented a collision between the first amendment to the United States Constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression and the press, and the 14th amendment, which protects the right to privacy.
The case and other broader issues regarding the first amendment became the subject of debate in the 2016 presidential campaign, after the then candidate Donald Trump-whom Hogan declared his support in the country’s last presidential election-announced plans to reform laws about defamation and facilitate media processes.
In the process, former WWE-free fight champion (World Wrestling Entertainment) said his privacy was violated when Gawker posted an excerpt from almost two minutes of the video.
Gawker’s lawyers argued that the story was protected by the first amendment and said Hogan had already discussed his sex life publicly.
The jury consisting of two men and four women, however, agreed with Hogan that his privacy had been violated, that this violation caused him damage, and that the star had a reasonable expectation to maintain his privacy.
