Hulk Hogan, the brash wrestling icon who made a career out of public spectacle, scored his most lasting victory not in the ring but in a Florida courtroom.
In 2016, a jury awarded him $140 million after Gawker Media published a sex tape of Hogan with a friend’s wife—an invasion of privacy so egregious, the verdict ultimately bankrupted the company.
Though the case later settled for $31 million, it altered the legal landscape for press freedom and privacy. Hogan, who died Thursday at 71, became the face of a new era in media litigation—one in which celebrities, emboldened by his success, increasingly challenge the media’s right to publish personal content, even when true.
Legal scholars view the trial as a turning point. “The public doesn’t necessarily like the press,” said law professor Samantha Barbas, noting that the verdict fueled a rise in privacy and libel lawsuits aimed at curbing media scrutiny—some led by high-profile figures like Donald Trump.
Hogan, born Terry Bollea, claimed he was unaware he’d been filmed during the consensual encounter, which involved his then-best friend’s wife.
When Gawker posted an edited clip in 2012, the fallout was deeply personal. “Eight-year-old kids were googling ‘Hulk Hogan’ and getting a sex tape,” recalled his lawyer Ken Turkel. Hogan wept when the verdict was read.
The case drew international attention, and revelations extended beyond the courtroom—including that Hogan’s legal fight was secretly funded by billionaire tech mogul Peter Thiel, whom Gawker had outed in 2007.
The jury rejected Gawker’s First Amendment defense, establishing that even truthful material can cross a legal line if it invades personal privacy.
“The Hogan case showed that it’s not just about what’s true,” said law professor Amy Gajda. “It’s about what’s too far.”
