CS for SB 752 — Defamation, False Light, and Unauthorized Publication of Name or Likenesses

• Requires newspapers, broadcasters, or periodicals that published a defamatory article or broadcast on the Internet to permanently remove it from any website they control within the applicable correction/retraction notice period (10–45 days depending on publication frequency) in order to limit plaintiff recovery to actual damages only.

• Extends existing immunity from defamation liability to newspaper owners, licensees, operators, and their agents/employees for defamatory statements made by third parties, provided they exercised due care to prevent publication — a protection previously limited to radio and television broadcasters.

• Establishes that if a media outlet publishes a defamatory statement online without knowledge of its falsity and later receives notice that the statement was found false in a judicial proceeding (or receives facts leading a reasonable person to conclude it was false), failure to permanently remove the statement triggers treatment as a new publication for statute of limitations purposes.

• Strips the fair reporting privilege from any owner, licensee, or operator who fails to take reasonable steps to remove a false statement from websites under their control after receiving notice of its falsity.

• Effective date is July 1, 2025.