Amy Griffin filed a defamation suit over statements that appeared in the New York Times
Author and venture capitalist Amy Griffin has filed a defamation suit against a former middle school classmate after the classmate in question alleged Griffin’s thievery of the abuse accounts that were in her 2025 memoir “The Tell,” reported the Associated Press.
Griffin claimed in her suit that the classmate’s statements, which appeared in a New York Times article, painted the picture that she was “a fraud and a thief” who “stole the rape of another woman and built a bestseller on it,” per a statement published by AP News.
Griffin wrote in “The Tell” that she had been sexually abused by a middle school teacher in Amarillo, Texas. She claimed that she used the psychedelic drug MDMA in therapy to recall the experience.
Six months after the book’s release, the Times released a story in which Griffin’s classmate alleged that the accounts were similar to her own experience. The classmate also alleged that someone claiming to be a talent agent phoned her in 2022 to get her story.
In March, the classmate sued Griffin in California state court – a suit Griffin is seeking the dismissal of.
Griffin countered in her defamation suit that she wrote down an account of her experience in 2020; a year later, she conducted an interview with the Amarillo Police Department about the incident. Both accounts are aligned with the one in “The Tell.” Griffin also said the classmate had falsely presented herself as someone referred to in the book as “Claudia.”
“Amy Griffin’s accuser has had every opportunity to set the record straight. This lawsuit’s purpose is to make the truth known. The New York Times knowingly promoted her false allegations and must also be held accountable,” Tom Clare, Griffin’s lawyer, told AP.
Griffin is seeking a declaration from the classmate that her statements were false in addition to damages. The suit was filed in Nevada federal court.
The classmate told the AP in an email sent through her legal representation that Griffin was attempting to silence her.
“She has had her lawyers identify me publicly as well as sue me. I am shocked and disappointed that she would choose to take this route, especially since she herself knows the truth,” the classmate wrote in the email.
Times spokesperson Danielle Rhoades Ha told the AP in an email that Griffin’s suit and related filings “repeatedly misrepresent The New York Times story and its reporting.” Rhoades said the Times’ story differed significantly “in key aspects” from how both Griffin and the classmate presented it in their suits.
Rhoades added that Griffin was challenging details that were not in the Times article. Moreover, the publication had reportedly engaged Griffin’s lawyers and fact-checked thoroughly before releasing the piece.
“Our story was about a publishing phenomenon, the reliability of memories recovered while under the influence of MDMA and the impact of a bestselling memoir on the author’s hometown. Our reporters’ only agenda was to pursue the facts, including corroboration of accounts from all sources,” Rhoades wrote.
“The Tell” was a bestseller that became an Oprah’s Book Club choice.
