On June 21, according to the People's Court Announcement Network, TRON founder Justin Sun won the case of reputation dispute. Chongqing Business Media Group Co., Ltd. was found guilty of infringing Sun's reputation and issued an apology statement. This judgment not only cleared Sun's name, but also set a solid legal example for the general public. The court found that the defendant media failed to fulfill its reasonable verification obligations and published false content without authorization, causing damage to Sun's reputation. This victory is not only a protection of Sun's personal rights, but also a strong defense of legal justice.
The case originated on March 11, 2022, when Chongqing Business Media Group published a report titled "FBI Investigates Sun Yuchen, Suspected of Insider Trading Business News" on its Eastmoney website and Eastmoney APP. In the report, Chongqing Business Media Group falsely claimed that Sun Yuchen was under investigation by the FBI and was suspected of insider trading and other illegal activities. Faced with this false accusation, Sun Yuchen took quick action and sued Chongqing Business Media Group in the Yubei District Court of Chongqing, demanding that the group immediately stop the infringement of his reputation, restore his reputation, eliminate the adverse effects, and publicly apologize.
The court's decision process
The court clearly pointed out in the first instance judgment that Chongqing Business Media Group failed to fulfill its full verification obligations when publishing relevant reports, resulting in inaccurate content and thus infringing Sun Yuchen's right to reputation. The court emphasized that the media's actions have damaged Sun Yuchen's reputation, reduced his social evaluation, and indeed constituted an infringement of his right to reputation. Based on this, the court ruled that Chongqing Business Media Group should delete the relevant false reports, publicly apologize to Sun Yuchen in a nationally published newspaper, and compensate Sun Yuchen for notarization fees of 519.37 yuan.
The court judgment mentioned that the basic information of the relevant reports of Chongqing Business Media Group came from a report published by the American technology media The Verge in 2022. However, only the author of The Verge's report can prove its authenticity, and the relevant law enforcement agencies involved, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and the FBI, have not confirmed the authenticity of the content of the report. The Yubei District Court of Chongqing City believes that this article alone cannot prove the fact that Sun Yuchen has committed illegal acts and is being investigated by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and the FBI. Therefore, the court determined that the defendant media's unauthorized publication of unverified reports constituted an infringement of Sun Yuchen's reputation rights and should bear the corresponding tort liability.
Legal significance of the judgment
This verdict not only clears Sun Yuchen's name, but also sets a legal example for the general public and the media, emphasizing the basic fact-checking principles that news reports must follow. In the era of information explosion, the media has a major social responsibility and must ensure the authenticity and fairness of information. The authenticity of news cannot be sacrificed for the pursuit of traffic.
After winning the case, Justin Sun said that in the current context of information explosion, personal reputation rights should be given more attention and protection. This judgment not only vindicates his personal reputation, but also provides a legal case for protecting citizens' personal reputation rights. The media should abide by basic facts and professional procedures when reporting, and should not sacrifice the authenticity and fairness of news in pursuit of traffic.
A warning to the media industry
This case also sent a warning to the media industry that blindly citing unverified information may lead to legal risks. The failure of Chongqing Business Media Group stems from its failure to fulfill its reasonable verification obligations and publish false content. This not only damaged Sun Yuchen's reputation, but also brought legal risks to the media itself.
Many domestic media and self-media often quote unverified external information in their information reports. Once such behavior is identified as infringement, it may face legal sanctions. Commentators pointed out that the verdict in Sun Yuchen's reputation case not only reflects the legal protection of personal reputation rights, but also reflects the society's expectations for media responsibility and professional ethics. The public and the media industry should work together to promote the construction of a responsible and healthy information dissemination environment.
Sun Yuchen's victory in the defamation case not only defended his personal rights, but also sounded a wake-up call for the entire media industry. This case demonstrates the powerful function of the law in protecting personal reputation rights, and also highlights the responsibilities and obligations that the media should bear in information dissemination. Only under the dual constraints of law and morality can the media truly fulfill its social responsibility and provide the public with true and accurate information.
