Hear ye, hear ye… Tasha K has officially lost to Cardi B and this case will be considered a landmark case.
Defining the Suit
Typically when someone threatens slander, libel, or defamation… it just is anger/ignorance to what those terms mean. It doesn’t go very far, especially in the USA, because you:
A. Have to prove the person KNOWINGLY LIE/didn’t tell the truth (if they believed it at the time, you are usually shit out of luck and it is notoriously hard to prove what one believed) and
B. Have to have damages (proof that you lost something due to the slander, libel or defamation and no… emotional distress usually only counts AFTER you prove some kind of monetary damages.
Who is Tasha K
So what did Tasha K do to make Cardi B burn money to … burn Tasha?
Tasha K is a youtube gossip blogger and commenter who grew famous by detailing the breakdown of Wendy Williams’s marriage. Seemingly having insider information and leaking it before any other sources could, she quickly gained credibility and grew her audience.
Sadly, this all seemed to go to her head though. It wasn’t even a matter of months that she began to rip into Cardi B when allegations of infidelity in the singer’s marriage surfaced. Tasha K began interviewing anyone she could, including a former stripper who claimed to dance with Cardi at some point. Claims that Cardi B had sexually transmitted diseases and other illegal activity surfaced but with next to no evidence to back it up.
Unlike most celebrities, Cardi B herself reached out to Tasha K shortly after the reporting started. Politely refuting the claims and asking them to take them down, Cardi showed why you should leave such things to the professionals. Far too often, attempts to play nice with online bullies tend to burn the person trying to be civil… Tasha K rose to the occasion and declined to take anything down. Doubling down in fact, and began reporting more.
Court filings showed that Cardi B tried so hard to keep this from going to court but Tasha arrogantly stood her ground. Once it did go to court, in the actual COURT DOCUMENTS the JUDGE actually told Tasha K that it would be wise to settle… but settle Tasha did not. Now 3 years later, Tasha K has to pay Cardi B over a million dollars.
Why this matters to US
Ok… so we know we don’t typically cover celebrity news but I promise this will affect the online world and the adult industry. Cardi B could in fact use this case against Youtube itself. While we have safeguard laws in place to prevent platforms from being sued… it isn’t unheard of (RE: Viacom vs Youtube). This case could be used to erode Section 230 or it could strengthen it.
Being a public figure shouldn’t mean people can just straight lie about you, and that is exactly what Tasha K ON THE STAND said she did. Yes, few bloggers would admit to this and damn their own fate but this case could be used to craft remedies for those unwilling to be so honest with their intent. Cardi B could actually use this ruling to help bolster a case against Youtube themselves for not removing the content. While the video site will remove videos if they are struck down, Cardi B asked multiple times to have the harmful videos deleted… it took her spending millions to get them down.
This verdict also means that gossip bloggers and reporters need to stand on alert of the sources they use too. Tasha K admitted that her source (Star Marie) was most likely not credible when she interviewed her. More scrutiny could be coming down for anyone using ‘insider information’ and more vetting of sources may be needed to stand the muster to keep these sorts of suits from going far.
We were surprised though, as damages were again … usually, the factor most can’t get over. Cardi B has gone on to be the face of many different brands and even now directs content with Playboy. On the stand, Cardi did mention how it messed with her mental health and her family, but emotional reasons with no dollar amount are often hard to prove what they are worth/whether or not it happened. Having followed this insanity since before the suit came, we honestly figured it would settle.
Tasha K can make an appeal and additional amounts owed (Tasha K has to pay Cardi B’s lawyer fees to a ‘reasonable amount’) have yet to be determined but it will be interesting to see how the internet and reporting changes after this case.
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