Supreme Court Could Overturn Sullivan

Carson Holloway argues that New York Times v. Sullivan (1964) is inconsistent with the original meaning of the First Amendment and should be targeted by an originalist Court. If the Court retreats from Sullivan’s high bar for public‑official defamation claims, states and private plaintiffs would face an easier path to sue media, with predictable chilling effects on investigative journalism and political criticism. — A rollback of Sullivan would reshape press risk calculations, election-year reporting, and the balance between reputation and robust public debate across the United States.