1. “Up until the day he died, he was a brilliant writer. But the drugs made him a thief, a pimp and a liar,” said friend Karen Smith, who was with Johnson at the time of his death.
*I don't think this is libelous because this is his FRIEND saying these things, not the reporter. It is clear in the story that it is not the reporter's opinion, because it has quote marks around the statement to show that it is is a direct quote, and the source of the quote is identified.
2. “Megan Fox is a man!” Headline on Weekly World News Web site
*I think this is potentially libelous because the claim being made in the headline is not backed up with any facts (perhaps it is later in the actual story, but if someone just read the headline...they could think that the news source is claiming this person is a man with no actual proof). Making a claim that is this controversial and this outrageous, and that could destroy this person's reputation really puts the news source at risk of being sued for libel.
3. “In my opinion, Kevin is a murdering rapist.”
*This is libelous because there is no attribution for the direct quote. The reporter doesn't say here who said this or why it was said. Maybe it is the reporter saying it and he/she just decided to put quotes around it, who knows?
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