Bardugo loses appeal, compensation to Raviv Drucker increased

In depth

Raviv Drucker filed a defamation suit against Yaakov Bardugo, Noam Pathi, Yotam Zamri and the radio stations, after the defendants attributed to him the offense of extortion by threats against Benny Gantz. Drucker argued that this was a false publication and an accusation that harmed his reputation.

The Tel Aviv District Court rejected the appeals of Bardugo, Pathi and Zamri, and increased the compensation awarded to Drucker by 105 thousand shekels, so that the sum stands at 285 thousand shekels. The judges ruled that uploading a radio program to the website of Galei Tzahal is a separate publication that entitles the plaintiff to additional compensation, and that publishing the recordings on the stations' websites justifies additional compensation of 60 thousand shekels.

The judges rejected the argument that a false fact cannot be presented and defended as an "expression of opinion," and ruled that a discourse by commentators or presenters does not exempt one from telling the truth. Drucker stated that the defendants broadcast false publications about him, and according to the ruling they will also pay him 45 thousand shekels in court costs.