A San Diego Superior Court judge has dismissed a defamation complaint against a San Diego-area journalist, ruling that his coverage of a proposed Imperial Valley data center was protected speech.
VISTA, Calif. (CN) – A San Diego Superior Court judge ruled in favor of a broadcast journalist Friday on defamation claims stemming from a plan to build a nearly 1 million square foot data center in Imperial County.
Superior Court Judge Cynthia Freeland granted an anti-SLAPP motion filed by KPBS and reporter Kori Suzuki to file a complaint filed by Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing over statements made in news articles published in December and January.
Sebastian Rucci, the developer, engineer and attorney for the data center project, sued Suzuki and San Diego State University, which owns KPBS, in February. According to Rucci, KPBS omitted crucial information from its news reporting that cast it and the proposed data center in a negative light.
But Freeland was skeptical from the start, telling Ruci that none of the information in the news articles was incorrect.
If built, the data center would be the largest in California.
Much of Rucci’s argument was based on Suzuki’s reporting that the data center would use about 750,000 gallons of water per day in an area already suffering from water supply problems. The developer has claimed that the water will be reclaimed water, instead of potable water.
Freeland was eventually confirmed its preliminary decision, the writ was aimed at protected speech on a matter of public interest. Further, it was clear that Suzuki’s reporting, when taken in its entirety, was fair and his reporting was not malicious or intentionally misleading to the public, Freehand said.
“Plaintiffs have not provided evidence that Suzuki published a false statement,” she wrote. “At best, Rucci states that he sent Suzuki ‘written commitments and engineering materials documenting that the project is designed to use 100% tertiary treated reclaimed water and not potable supply.'”
“If the project was designed to use reclaimed water it does not change the true reporting from Suzuki – the project would require 750,000 gallons of water per day.” the judge continued. “Plaintiffs fail to demonstrate that the other surrounding statements made the water use defamatory statement true. Even if readers could reasonably assume that the water use would not be reclaimed water, Suzuki could not confirm that reclaimed water would be used, so making such a claim would have been misleading.”
Rucci also challenged Suzuki’s reporting suggesting he was trying to avoid California’s environmental review process, as well as the reporter’s portrayal of his past criminal charges, which he argued were misleading.
“All of these things give him a defamatory blow,” Rucci told the court during arguments, adding that the project would provide a major economic benefit to the region.
Attorney Jeff Michalowski argued that the defamation cases in question do not allow causes of action over the displeasure of the stories.
“The reason KPBS is reporting on this is because it’s so contested, so sharp and so difficult,” he said. “That’s what the public needs, is someone to sift through that information and identify the facts. And that’s exactly why defamation standards are so protective of media defendants who report on areas of public concern like this, because they’re bound to be crowded and there’s always going to be stakeholders unhappy with the narratives.”
Suzuki, who has continued to report at Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing, was present in the courtroom with his attorneys.
The Imperial Valley Data Center campus is part of a broader effort across the country to develop the infrastructurefor artificial intelligence. According to its websitethe project is expected to generate approximately $29 million in local taxes annually and more than 100 permanent jobs, as well as 2,500 jobs during its construction and a one-time sales tax of $72.5 million.
The anti-SLAPP motion (or strategic lawsuits against public participation) that Suzuki and KPBS filed is a legal procedure designed to quickly overturn lawsuits that target constitutionally protected free speech or petition activity.
Rucci has also filed suit on behalf of Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing in Imperial County Superior Court seeking access to additional water sources for the data center.
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