Oprah SLAPPed by Texas Cattle Ranchers

In perhaps the most well-known SLAPP, Oprah Winfrey was sued in 1996 by Texas cattle ranchers after a show called “Dangerous Food,” in which she invited experts on mad cow disease, and said she wouldn’t eat another hamburger.

The ranchers alleged more than $12 million in damages. Texas does not have an anti-SLAPP law, so Winfrey fought the SLAPP in trial for six weeks before a jury found in her favor. On appeal in 2000, the U.S. Fifth Circuit affirmed the ruling. 

See Texas Beef Group v. Winfrey, 201 F.3d 680 (2000).

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