Idaho editor subpoenaed to testify in defamation case

Nate Sunderland, the managing editor of EastIdahoNews.com, was subpoenaed on Dec. 5, 2024, to testify in a defamation trial; he appeared in a Pocatello, Idaho, court on Dec. 11.

In the underlying case, Idaho business owner Kris Taylor sued lawyer Patrick Davis for defamation in August 2023. The suit, ultimately resolved in favor of Davis, was based on comments he had made about an embezzlement trial for a 2022 story written by EastIdahoNews.com reporter Kaitlyn Hart.

In 2023, Hart had received subpoenas from both Davis and Taylor seeking materials related to her reporting. EastIdahoNews.com ultimately reached an agreement under which the outlet turned over to Davis a copy of a recorded interview Hart had made of him. Taylor could then subpoena it directly from Davis, instead of from the news outlet.

But in November 2024, EastIdahoNews.com received a deposition notice from Taylor’s attorney, seeking a wide swathe of information about its circulation, social media, commenting systems and business practices, according to court documents and an article by Sunderland about the case.

Sunderland wrote that EastIdahoNews.com agreed to the deposition, which took place Nov. 12, on the condition that he would not speak about proprietary business operations, anything in Hart’s recording of Davis or interactions with sources. “In essence, we agreed to discuss the size of EastIdahoNews.com in relation to other media in Idaho and how many people read and commented on the 2022 article,” Sunderland wrote.

“The bottom line is that we pushed back on any request for information regarding the newsgathering or publication of this story,” the outlet’s attorney, Steve Wright, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker.

Of his Dec. 11 court appearance, Sunderland wrote in his subsequent account that taking the stand was a “career first” that left him “deeply troubled.”

“I’ve spent the last two decades of my career trying hard to avoid the experience. Like most journalists, I fervently believe reporters and editors shouldn’t be put on the stand,” he said.

Idaho Press Club President Melissa Davlin told EastIdahoNews.com in December 2024 that the organization has seen an increase in subpoenas of journalists in the state.

“Subpoenas have a chilling effect on sources and whistleblowers, and fighting subpoenas take up time and resources that should be spent reporting the news. Getting a shield law in Idaho is a priority for us,” she said.

At the time, Idaho was one of 10 states that did not have a law protecting journalists or outlets from turning over their sources. That changed in March 2025, when Gov. Brad Little signed Idaho’s reporter’s shield bill into law.