Deadspin Loses Bid to Dismiss Defamation Suit Over Accusing 9-Year-Old Chiefs Fan of Blackface

A Delaware judge rejected a motion by Deadspin to dismiss a defamation lawsuit for falsely accusing a 9-year-old NFL fan of wearing blackface in an article, according to the Associated Press.

Last November, then-Deadspin writer Carron J. Phillips published a photo of a kid named Holden Armenta from a Chiefs game wearing a Native American headdress and his face painted. Armenta painted his face half red and half black in support of his favorite team, the Kansas City Chiefs. However, Phillips's article only showed one side of the child's face: the side painted black.

Here is the photo Deadspin showed its readers:

Here is how the fan actually looked at the game:

Quite the difference, no?

In the article – titled "The NFL needs to speak out against the Kansas City Chiefs fan in Black face, Native headdress" – Phillips stated with certainty that the boy had "found a way to hate black people and Native Americans at the same time." 

In reality, Armenta is actually a Native American.

Deadspin posted the article on Nov. 27, 2023, but did not correct the piece until Dec. 7, when the family threatened legal action. Yet when the site finally added an editor's note to the article and retained the accusations of racism, the outlet tried to defend itself with two easily provable lies.

First, the note claimed the outlet was "unaware" of the full photo until it received a letter from the family's lawyer. That is not true. 

Photos of Armenta's full face were widely available at the time Deadspin posted the article and posted across the internet afterward. OutKick sent Deadspin the full photo of Armenta's face painted red and black on Nov. 29, asking why it had refused to correct the piece.

Further, Phillips admitted to knowing the fan was