Nor is the Times likely to be intimidated by the prospect of a Trump lawsuit They have their own lawyers who surely reviewed the piece before it went out and they know the law Some have speculated that smaller news outlets may indeed be intimidated by such threats but this type of exposure isn t like the Hulk Hogan tape that sunk Gawker Any properly vetted reasonably sourced accusations are safe they are about a public figure and germane to a central issue in the presidential campaign 