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I am a cartoonist for my college's school newspaper and I made a comic making fun of a specific fraternity (delta tau delta). I said things like they drink a lot, drive BMW's and wear polo shirts with popped collars, etc. I never implied anything I said was true, and drew a generic guy with all the stereotypical "frat" garb. I in fact used the word "factoid" in the title of the piece. They are threatening to sue me for defamation of character, and I have been suspended for two issues from my school newspaper. I didn't publish the comic, the newspaper did. Did I do anything wrong, and do any of these people have the right to sue me or suspend my comic?
State/Country relating to Question: Georgia Already Tried: I have talked with campus police because of some threatening e-mails I have received from fraternity members.
Thank you for your question.
The school has the right to suspend your comic based on its own rules. However, an action in defamation would likely not be successful. The very nature of a cartoon is that it exaggerates and does not accurately depict the truth. If readers would not reasonably presume that you are making factual statements about the fraternity, the cartoon cannot be considered defamatory. Additionally, defamation suits are costly, and the potential monetary gain would likely not be worth the fraternity's time and money.
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