NFL issues demand for New York Times to retract concussion article

The National Football League did not respond kindly to a report from the New York Times last week, in which the NFL was linked to lacking concussion research gathering and tobacco industry representatives in a very negative light. A simple statement in response to the story was not enough. Now the NFL is demanding that the New York Times issue a retraction of the story.

A letter from an attorney representing the NFL (Brad S. Karp) was sent to the legal counsel of the New York Times on Monday. In the letter, the NFL outlines the facts which the league disputes from the story, focusing on the alleged ties to the tobacco industry and a headline the NFL has called sensationalized. The letter goes on to suggest anyone connected to the story hold on to any and all materials used to build the story, because it may be needed if and when the NFL takes the New York Times to court over the story.

From the letter, which was shared by Politico.

On behalf of the National Football League (“NFL” or “League”), and following up on our letter to you dated March 20, 2016, we write concerning the Times”s March 24 lead digital story, “N.F.L.’s Flawed Concussion Research and Ties to the Tobacco Industry” (published as the lead story on page Al of the Times’?, March 25 print edition). The extensive evidence we provided to your reporters pre-publication conclusively demonstrated the falsity of both the thesis and every material aspect of this story.

Its sensational headline notwithstanding, the story did not show any meaningful “ties to the tobacco industry.” Nor did it present a shred of evidence to support its thesis that the NFL intentionally concealed concussion research data. By publishing the story, fully aware of the falsity of the underlying facts, the Times recklessly disregarded the truth and defamed the NFL, even under the public-figure Sullivan test.

Accordingly, we demand that the story immediately be retracted, and we reserve our rights more broadly. We also request that the Times’s reporters and editors who worked on this story preserve their notes, correspondence, emails, recordings and work papers and all other electronic and hard copy documents generated or received in connection with their work.

The gauntlets were already off between the NFL and New York Times, but now it appears the NFL has taken their glove and slapped the Times across the face with their stern demands. Now we just wait to see how the New York Times will respond.

[Politico]