Witness Lists in FishbowlDC Lawsuit Full of Local Media Personalities

Tucker Carlson, Emily Miller, and lots of other local media types could be called to testify in the $2 million defamation suit. By Benjamin Freed

Comments () | Published August 23, 2013

The witness lists in the defamation lawsuit against media blog FishbowlDC include more than a few names familiar to local media junkies.

Wendy Gordon, a DC-area publicist, filed a $2 million defamation suit in January against Fishbowl editor Betsy Rothstein and contributor Peter Ogburn. Gordon’s lawyers are arguing that a series of posts mocking her social media photos “falsely depicted Ms. Gordon as a self-promoting, attention-seeking, loose party girl/cougar, constantly on the prowl for considerably younger men for casual, sexual relations.” Gordon is also suing Fishbowl’s parent company, Mediabistro Inc.

The witness lists, which were first reported by Washington City Paper, feature a handful of boldface names. Among the 12 potential witnesses for the defense are Daily Caller editor-in-chief Tucker Carlson, former Washington Times columnist Charlie Hurt, and former Times editor Sam Dealey. Also on the list is Washingtonian editor-at-large Carol Ross Joynt.

Gordon’s lawyers are listing 31 potential witnesses, including Times columnist Emily Miller, Washington Post reporter Paul Schwartzman, and WAID-FM personality Tommy McFly. The plaintiff’s list also features many of Gordon’s fellow public relations executives.