John Oliver sued for 'character assassination' on HBO's Last Week Tonight

Christopher Hooton
Thursday 22 June 2017 10:37 BST
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John Oliver: We have been told to 'cease and desist' but let's talk about Bob Murray

John Oliver, HBO, Time Warner and the writers of Last Week Tonight are being sued by Republican coal baron Robert E. Murray.

The suit, filed in Marshall County, West Virginia, alleges that the show "executed a meticulously planned attempt to assassinate the character of and reputation of Mr. Robert E. Murray and his companies" in a recent episode.

It continues: "They did this to a man who needs a lung transplant, a man who does not expect to live to see the end of this case."

The suit was entirely expected, with Oliver even predicting it during the episode in question as Murray has sued several media outlets recently including the New York Times in May. He previously sent the show its first cease-and-desist letter.

Oliver tore into Murray for not doing enough to protect miners' safety. Murray took particular issue in the suit with the comedian's discussion of the collapse of one of Murray's mines in Utah - Oliver attributed it to unauthorised mining practices, while Murray blamed an earthquake.

“Because Defendant Oliver omitted any mention of the other reports he was aware of that evidenced that an earthquake caused the collapse, as Mr. Murray correctly stated following the collapse, Defendant Oliver’s presentation intentionally and falsely implied that there is no such evidence,” the complaint outlined.

(via The Daily Beast)

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