Jay Z, the US rapper, has accused Tony Buzbee of editing Wikipedia pages as part of an effort to damage his reputation.
The controversy started in December when lawyer Buzbee filed a lawsuit against Jay Z, accusing the music mogul of raping a 13-year-old girl in 2000.
Jay Z, 55, denied the allegations. He also slammed Buzbee for allegedly trying to extort him.
This lawyer seems to have a pattern of these type of theatrics. I have no idea how you have come to be such a deplorable human Mr. Buzbee. I’m more than prepared to deal with your type, he had said.
But in February, Jane Doe, the lady in the suit, dropped the case without a settlement payment.
In a lawsuit filed on Monday, Jay Z’s legal team alleged that the lawyer edited Wikipedia pages to damage the reputation of the rapper and his label Roc Nation.
In violation of Wikipedia’s rules, Buzbee directed his employees to edit Wikipedia pages to enhance Buzbee’s image and damage Mr. Carter’s and Roc Nation’s reputations, the document reads.
Users with an IP address directly linked to the Buzbee Firm made over 100 positive edits to Buzbee’s Wikipedia page.
After Defendants filed Doe’s lawsuit, the media reported that other businesses could end their deals with Roc Nation and would likely force these business partners to speak out and address how the allegations would affect or even end their business relationship.
This is exactly the result defendants intended, banking on the fact that Mr. Carter would fear the reputational assassination, cave and pay.
The lawsuit, however, did not elaborate on what exact edits were allegedly made to Wikipedia.
Jay Z’s legal team also argued that the rapper lost a $20 million income and was denied a $55 million personal credit line because of the rape allegation.
The lawsuit included claims that a company the rapper is associated with was denied a $115 million loan.
