Journalist Yashar Ali has filed a defamation lawsuit against Los Angeles Magazine over a 2021 profile he says mischaracterized him and maligned his journalistic ethics, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.
The 6,000-word profile, published in June 2021, provided several details about his career and personal life, including alleged friendships with celebrities and politicians, financial hardships, and unflattering portrayals of how he works.
In his lawsuit, according to the LA Times, Ali accuses Los Angeles Magazine of not employing a fact checker, and not verifying assertions made in the article by its author, Peter Keifer. He also claims he was never provided with an appropriate amount of time to respond to negative claims asserted about him.
Ali also took issue with the claim made in the article that he became suicidal over the article, which he sais “falsely implies that he acknowledged the truth of the supposed revelations in the article and was distraught that the public was going to learn the supposed truth about him.” He asserts, according to LAT, that he struggled with suicidal thoughts before he learned how the article would portray him.
According to the LA Times, Los Angeles Magazine says it was unaware the lawsuit had been filed.
Ali also spoke out against the article in an interview with Journalist Parker Molloy, which you can read here.