The owner, licensee or operator of a radio and television broadcasting station or network of stations, and the agents or employees of any such owner, licensee or operator, shall not be liable for any damages for any defamatory statement published or uttered in or as a part of any such broadcast, by one other than such owner, licensee or operator, or agent or employee thereof, unless it shall be alleged and proved by the complaining party, that such owner, licensee, operator, such agent or employee, failed to exercise due care to prevent the publication or utterance of such statement in such broadcast; provided, however, that in no event shall any owner, licensee or operator, or the agents or employees of any such owner, licensee or operator of such a station or network of stations be held liable for damages for any defamatory statement broadcast over the facilities of such station or network by or on behalf of any candidate for public office.
§ 8.01-49.Defamatory statements in radio and television broadcasts.
Chapter 3. Actions · Article 4. Defamation · Last amended 1977 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceShields a radio or television station, its owner, licensee, or operator, and agents or employees from liability for a defamatory statement made during a broadcast by someone else, unless the complaining party proves the station failed to exercise due care, and grants absolute immunity for statements broadcast by or on behalf of a political candidate.
Full Text of § 8.01-49
Plain-English Summary
The owner, licensee, or operator of a radio or television broadcasting station or network, and their agents or employees, are not liable for damages for a defamatory statement published or uttered in or as part of a broadcast by someone other than the owner, licensee, operator, agent, or employee, unless the complaining party alleges and proves that the owner, licensee, operator, agent, or employee failed to exercise due care to prevent the publication or utterance of the statement in the broadcast.
The section carves out an absolute rule for one category: no owner, licensee, or operator, or their agents or employees, may be held liable for damages for a defamatory statement broadcast over the station’s or network’s facilities by or on behalf of any candidate for public office, regardless of what due care the station exercised.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a TV or radio station automatically liable if a guest says something defamatory on air?
No. The station is not liable for a defamatory statement made during a broadcast by someone other than the station’s own owner, licensee, operator, agent, or employee, unless the complaining party proves the station failed to exercise due care to prevent it.
What does a plaintiff have to prove to hold a broadcaster liable for someone else’s defamatory statement?
That the owner, licensee, operator, or their agent or employee failed to exercise due care to prevent the publication or utterance of the statement in the broadcast.
Is a station ever liable for a defamatory statement made by a political candidate during a broadcast?
No. The section provides that in no event shall the station, its owner, licensee, operator, or their agents or employees be held liable for damages for a defamatory statement broadcast by or on behalf of a candidate for public office.
Does this section protect the station’s own employees if they make the defamatory statement themselves?
The due-care standard applies to statements made by someone other than the owner, licensee, operator, agent, or employee; the section is directed at third-party statements aired during a broadcast.
Why does this section treat candidate broadcasts differently from other broadcasts?
The section itself does not explain the reason, but it sets an absolute rule for candidate broadcasts distinct from the due-care standard that otherwise applies to third-party statements.
Amendment History
Code 1950, § 8-632.1; 1977, c. 617.
Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Code of Virginia, published by the
Code of Virginia, Virginia Division of Legislative Automated Systems. Last verified July 16, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: virginia broadcaster defamation immunity8.01-49 radio television station liabilitydue care standard broadcast defamation virginiapolitical candidate defamatory broadcast immunity virginiava code tv radio station libel defense