Brett Favre Asks 5th Cir. to Reinstate Defamation Suit (1)

The context in which NFL Hall of Famer and television host Shannon Sharpe delivered allegedly defamatory commentary about Brett Favre’s involvement in a Mississippi spending scandal took center stage during oral argument Tuesday before the Fifth Circuit.

The judges made clear that, at least in today’s world, the boundaries between news and commentary are being blurred as they challenged both sides’ position about Sharpe’s use of the words steal, taking, and stole— language at the heart of the alleged defamation.

At one point, one of the judges suggested Sharpe’s commentary was at least in the ballpark of rhetorical hyperbole when ...