Time, Inc. v. Pape
Decided February 24, 1971. Potter Stewart delivered the opinion of the Court.
Docket 109 · 401 U.S. 279 (1971) · Cited 420 times
Holding
In the circumstances of this case the magazine did not engage in a 'falsification' sufficient in itself to sustain a jury finding of 'actual malice.'
The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.
How the Justices voted
Decided 8–1.
Majority · 6
- Potter Stewart · delivered the opinion of the Court
- Byron Raymond White
- Harry Andrew Blackmun
- Thurgood Marshall
- Warren Earl Burger
- William Joseph Brennan Jr.
Concurring · 2
- Hugo Lafayette Black · filed a concurring opinion
- William Orville Douglas
Dissenting · 1
- John Marshall Harlan · filed a dissenting opinion
“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.
Precedents cited
Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.
- New York Times Co. v. Sullivan · 376 U.S. 254 (1964)
- St. Amant v. Thompson · 390 U.S. 727 (1968)
- Garrison v. Louisiana · 379 U.S. 64 (1964)
- Napue v. Illinois · 360 U.S. 264 (1959)
- Greenbelt Cooperative Publishing Assn., Inc. v. Bresler · 398 U.S. 6 (1970)
- Niemotko v. Maryland · 340 U.S. 268 (1951)
- Beckley Newspapers Corp. v. Hanks · 389 U.S. 81 (1967)
Cited by
Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.
- Bose Corp. v. Consumers Union of United States, Inc. · 466 U.S. 485 (1984)
- Masson v. New Yorker Magazine, Inc. · 501 U.S. 496 (1991)
- Rosenbloom v. Metromedia, Inc. · 403 U.S. 29 (1971)
- Time, Inc. v. Firestone · 424 U.S. 448 (1976)
- Harte-Hanks Communications, Inc. v. Connaughton · 491 U.S. 657 (1989)
- Herbert v. Lando · 441 U.S. 153 (1979)
- Ohralik v. Ohio State Bar Assn. · 436 U.S. 447 (1978)
- Florida Star v. B. J. F. · 491 U.S. 524 (1989)
- Mayor of Philadelphia v. Educational Equality League · 415 U.S. 605 (1974)
Official text
Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)
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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1971). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).