Lawsuit on Forum24

I am suing Forum24

The cup of "normal" media expression has overflowed a long time ago, but I think even journalistic work should have some limits and not constantly reach into the deepest mud and write completely obvious lies that have only one goal: to discredit and increase readership and own sales on these victims.

On September 24, the editor-in-chief of the Forum24 server wrote a completely false and deliberately defamatory article "And we have another bottom. The mayor of Náchod's eighteen-year-old daughter died, anti-vaxxers are rejoicing", which on the server hung on the main page all Sunday.

In the text, without citing any source, the author tries to give the impression that I rejoice at someone's death, and what's more, she directly writes that "tens of thousands of people died needlessly because of such spreaders of lies as Mr. Tománek". Which is really strong coffee that cannot be easily passed over.

That's why I decided to file a lawsuit on FORUM24 and demand both an apology and a financial sum for the damage caused.

A week ago, we sent a pre-lawsuit request to the server to remove the article, publish an apology and pay a "symbolic" sum of 1 million crowns, which I would donate to the children.

(Link to the full text of the pre-suit summons: PDF)

Instead of an apology and an answer, today another false article about me was published in the printed weekly, where this time a different editor tries to create the impression that I deleted some kind of article where I was "making myself popular" or perhaps mocking death.

I NEVER wrote any text like that, so I couldn't even delete it!
The only status I posted about the death of Mayor Birke's daughter is still online and it is the following image where I just linked the Mayor's older article urging young people to get vaccinated and the latest newspaper article where the media reports that his young daughter died of an embolism. I only wrote that I am not going to comment on it in any way and that others should ask.

This is in no way a random and isolated excess from the Forum24 server, because I have counted similar defamatory articles about my person fourteen in total.

When suing, it is necessary to submit 1% from the sued amount + court fees, payment for a lawyer and, in the event of a loss, also for the opposing party's lawyer, which is "fun" that costs more than tens of thousands of crowns, and the media rely on the fact that an ordinary person cannot sacrifice so much with the fact that even if he is right, the result of the court is completely uncertain.

But as I wrote, the cup has overflowed and this cannot be tolerated by the media any longer. In 2012, Marek Vašut sued the boulevard for 1 million crowns, "only" for the fact that they completely fabricatedly wrote about him as having depression.
Well, where have we come in eleven years, haven't we?

I have no ambitions to make a living from this, and all the money I get if I win in court will be donated to the children and I take the lawsuit not only as a defense of my honor, but as the protection of everyone who has already been intentionally harmed by this server in the past.

BTW
Thank you very much to the good lady from the tobacco shop on Vinohradská, who let me photograph the article in the printed weekly for court purposes, so that I would not have to support this mud with a single crown.

Update - October 19, 2023

Through a legal representative, I have filed a lawsuit against the Forum24 portal at the District Court for Prague 1, in which I will demand the removal of a false and defamatory text about me, I will demand the publication of an apology, and I will also request compensation for non-pecuniary damage in the amount of 4 million Czech crowns.

Update - November 3, 2023

On October 30, the District Court for Prague 1 accepted my lawsuit against Forum24. A court fee of CZK 40,000 was also paid yesterday.
Thank you very much to everyone who contributed to the lawsuit - to date, CZK 64,132 has been collected, the rest of the money and the rest that will be collected will be used for legal services related to the lawsuit.

Update - March 8, 2024

Today, the first hearing against Forum24 took place at the District Court for Prague 1.

The very "quality" of Forum24's journalistic work is probably best described by their own statement on our lawsuit:

"...the defendant emphasizes that part of the article "The fact that tens of thousands of people have died needlessly because of such spreaders of lies as Mr. Tománek, but they remain tactfully silent" represents journalistic exaggeration.“

And the biggest crown to everything, however, is their expression:
"As for the "anti-vaxxers rejoice" part of the article, this part of the article it is not primarily associated with the plaintiff, but is mainly based on the contribution of Lukáš Neterda dated 22/09/2023, which stated "Jan Birke's daughter died of an embolism. Think what you want about me, but I am sincerely happy about this event of this COVIDista, I wish him the same and I laugh at him.¨

So - that I am spreader of lies and that tens of thousands of people died because of me – is, according to Forum24, "journalistic exaggeration" and the entire headline and body of the article, which is completely about me, is actually about someone completely different that I'm not with at all nothing in common and what is even more spicy, his name is not even mentioned in the text...

So much for the work of the "quality" journalists of Forum24 and that, by which he quite seriously defends his lies before the court… 😉

The next hearing was adjourned so that we could complete and specify some details, including the amount of non-property damage.
Moving on - thanks for your interest, support and I'll write again as soon as anything else is known.

Update - August 8, 2024

A sequel and an unashamedly intimidating verdict!

If you would like to contribute to the lawsuit, please send any amount to the transparent account of the Healthy Forum 2602999420/2010 and please include a note "Action".