Declan McCullagh kindly forwarded Mike Godwin's comments thusly:
From: Mike Godwin <mnemonic@well.com> Subject: Re: UK newspaper names Zimmermann a "neo-Nazi sympathiser" To: Declan McCullagh Date: Wed, 24 Jan 1996 18:13:11 -0800 (PST) Cc: fight-censorship+@andrew.cmu.edu
Zimmermann stands to recover a lot if he sues the Telegraph under British libel laws.
--Mike
[...]
Er no, in practice it is hard to persue a libel case in the UK where the publication has responded immediately with a printed apology - especially if the apology is prominently placed. The mail catenated to Godwin's comments (from PRZ himself) indicates that the Sunday Telegraph will be publishing such an apology in their next edition. An out of court settlement, apart from lawyers costs, may yield a charitable donation but it certainly looks like PRZ will benefit from a sympathetic article which seems to me to be a pretty good result! Cheers, -- Anthony Naggs - Computer Security & Anti-Virus Engineer, CSIR, South Africa Disclaimer: these are my personal views and opinions, and do not represent my employers; past, present or future.