Judge to decide whether to jail Fits News blogger
Whether to toss South Carolina Fits News blogger Will Folks in jail for not revealing confidential sources or give him lesser sanctions is now in the hands of state Judge William Keesley.
In late June, Keesley gave lawyers for Folks and Rep. Kenny Bingham, R-Lexington, who is suing Folks for libel, until Friday to file proposed orders intended to persuade him how to rule.
At issue are identities of several confidential sources quoted by Folks in articles on his internet opinion-news site, called Fits News. In a lawsuit against Folks and Fits News, Bingham charged that the sources falsely implicated him in criminal activity and he is demanding to know their identities.
Bingham’s lawyer Johnny Parker said Friday he is asking that the judge hold Folks in contempt and assess a fine. If Folks doesn’t disclose the sources within two weeks, Parker wants him jailed “until the order is obeyed.”
Folks’ lawyers, who include Sen. Tom Davis, R-Beaufort, former U.S. Attorney Pete Strom and Rep. Mandy Powers Norrell, D-Lancaster, have sent Keesley two different proposed orders.
In one proposal, Folks’ attorneys ask Keesley to rule that Folks is not in contempt because his refusal to divulge confidential sources’ names is rooted in his good motives to avoid breaching his contract with them. Additionally, journalistic ethics require him to honor a pledge of confidentiality.
In a second proposal, Folks’ lawyers ask Keesley to find their client in contempt but not fine Folks or put him in jail. Instead, this suggests the proper sanction is to instruct the jury in the libel case that it can presume Folks had no sources for the alleged libelous statements made by confidential sources.
If Bingham learns the identities, he has indicated he will sue them for libel also. Folks has said he promised the sources confidentiality, and that amounts to a contract for which he can held liable, should he break it. Journalistic ethics also prevent him from divulging sources, and his sources have refused his request to allow him to name them, Folks testified June 28.
Folks, 42, is no traditional journalist. His news posts often editorialize and are a mix of scoops and anonymous-source speculation. At times his work lacks the dimensions of context and representation of other sides of a story that traditional journalists usually provide.
His website, www.fitsnews.com, has the motto “Unfair, Imbalanced.”
Since Folks operates in a kind of journalistic gray area, his attorneys are asking Keesley to declare him a “bona fide” member of the news media.
Parker has argued that Folks is not a true journalist and any claims that he should be treated like one should be dismissed.
This story was originally published July 7, 2017 at 7:37 PM with the headline "Judge to decide whether to jail Fits News blogger."