Western Broadcast Co. v. Times-Mirror Co.

CRAIL, P. J.

This is an appeal from a judgment for damages for libel on the judgment roll alone. The sole question presented for our determination is whether plaintiff’s complaint is good against a general demurrer. If it is, the judgment should be affirmed; if not, it should be reversed. Plaintiff is the owner of KNX, one of the largest and most popular radio stations, so powerful in its number of kilowatts that it covers the nine western states of our nation. The Times-Mirror Company is the owner of one of the largest and most influential newspapers in the same area. The occasion of the publication of the alleged libelous article was the controversy arising between said parties over the dropping of the listing

[122]

of KNX from the metropolitan papers when the listings of other radio stations continued to be carried.

The plaintiff concedes that no special damages are alleged or prayed for and that the complaint is demurrable under such circumstances unless the article is libelous

per se.

In determining whether the article is libelous

per se

we must consider it in its entirety, and for this reason we have felt obliged to set it forth in full. It is as follows:

“A Plain Statement

“During the past few days The Times has received numerous inquiries from radio listeners asking the reason for the omission of radio listings of Station KNX from the daily ‘dials’ of this and all other Los Angeles metropolitan newspapers. Inasmuch as many of those so inquiring have obviously been the victims of purposeful misinformation, it is proper and necessary that the facts be made public.

“KNX listings have been omitted from the radio news of the Los Angeles press because that station has consistently refused to cooperate with the newspapers of America, with the national press associations and with other broadcasting stations in the joint endeavor of these agencies to protect the public, themselves and the good name of radio itself through measures to insure that only authentic news from established and thoroughly reliable sources is allowed to go on the air. With this effort Station KNX has not only refused to join; it has publicly ridiculed and attempted to discredit it and its sponsors and participants. It was not until every effort to secure this station’s co-operation had been exhausted that the present course was forced upon the newspapers.