jillian
Princess
If we were to follow Libel and Slander Law's to the Letter, most of our Judge's and Politician's would be in jail with the Media, and our Educator's, leaving Nobody to run the Asylum. We all know that won't happen. That said, you all are looking at the incident from a partisan perspective.
different standard for private people and public figures.
for a discussion on that issue, see NEW YORK TIMES CO. v. SULLIVAN, 376 U.S. 254 (1964). it's pretty clear. there are also limited public figure exceptions. sherrod didn't fit into one. when you disparage someone in their trade or profession, that is libel per se.
as for judges, there is no such thing as defamation in the context of a law suit. you can say what you want, limited only by frivolous behavior which may be sanctioned.