Photographer Beats YouTuber’s Defamation Lawsuit Over Comments on ‘Suggestive’ Youth Wrestling Videos

A sports photographer has beaten a YouTuber’s defamation lawsuit over comments she allegedly made about “suggestive” videos of youth wrestlers.

Last year, videographer Nima Gharavi, a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCA) wrestling official who runs a YouTube account dedicated to youth wrestling videos, sued sports photographer Allyson Schwab. Schwab, a Cedar Falls, Iowa-based photographer and videographer, reportedly has a substantial social media following for her youth wrestling images.

According to a report by Iowa Capital Dispatch, Gharavi says he has filmed youth wrestling matches for many years, initially producing videos exclusively for wrestling officials. He later launched a public YouTube channel, Midwest Wrestle, to share his passion for the sport. The channel has since gained more than 175,000 subscribers.

The lawsuit alleges that at some point Gharavi realized that some websites with which he has no connection had copied, without his knowledge or permission, video content from his YouTube channel Midwest Wrestle and posted it to third-party websites that contained pornography or other objectionable content. Gharavi says he filed hundreds of takedown requests and issued 11 subpoenas seeking to identify those who pirated his videos.

‘Parents Don’t Know Their Kids are on Someone’s YouTube’

However, in the meantime, court documents claim that in December 2023 and January 2024, photographer Schwab published multiple posts to X (the platform formerly known as Twitter), encouraging parents to watch out for “suggestive” online videos of youth wrestling matches that were generating hundreds of thousands of views.

The photographer argued that parents are often unaware their children’s wrestling matches were being posted online and attracting huge view counts, which she said should raise concerns. The lawsuit argued that while Schwab didn’t explicitly name Gharavi, the posts contained enough specific details, including video view counts, to identify his Midwest Wrestle YouTube channel.

“This makes me sick and why I got this convo going,” Schwab allegedly wrote in one post, according to court documents. “So many parents don’t know their kids are on someone’s YouTube… No reason a 46kg youth girls match should have 2.6 million views … The kids think it’s normal to have 400k views on their video from a local youth or hs [high school] tournament.”

And around the time Schwab posted her comments, the Des Moines Register reports that Gharavi was “ejected” from the Midlands Championships wrestling tournament by Northwestern University Head Wrestling Coach Matt Storniolo. The lawsuit also alleges that after Gharavi was ejected from the Midlands Championships as a videographer, Schwab contacted Coach Storniolo without being prompted, praising him for removing Gharavi and calling him her “hero.”

In the following months, several athletic organizations canceled or declined to renew their contracts with Gharavi as a videographer, according to the lawsuit. It also claims a third party posted his home address on social media alongside the false allegations, after which Gharavi received threats, and someone attempted to break into his home.

The Alleged Cost of The Comments

Court documents claim Schwab had effectively accused Gharavi of misconduct serious enough to warrant schools and tournament directors denying him credentials. Gharavi filed a lawsuit against Schwab over her comments on social media, seeking unspecified damages for defamation and invasion of privacy by painting the YouTuber in a false light, intentional infliction of emotional distress, as well as tortious interference with business relationships.

However, Schwab prevailed after U.S. District Judge Leonard Strand dismissed Gharavi’s lawsuit, ruling that the YouTuber had not provided sufficient grounds to support a defamation claim against the photographer. The judge says Schwab’s posts did not clearly identify Gharavi, did not accuse him of producing or distributing child pornography, and did not clearly damage his professional reputation.

The judge also noted that the posts appeared to express opinions about visual media published by others, rather than make factual claims that could support a defamation lawsuit.

“Expressions of opinion relating to matters of public concern receive full constitutional protection and cannot sustain a defamation claim,” Judge Strand says in his ruling, according to the Iowa Capital Dispatch. “On their face, Schwab’s posts appear to offer her opinions on what visual media is being published by others.”