Man files libel suit over article on book ban debate
Says he was accused of threatening school board
A progressive Iowa journalist is being sued over coverage of a 2022 book-banning dispute in Scott County.
Plaintiff Peter Olsen is alleging libel by Laura Belin, who runs the progressive political website Bleeding Heartland and covers the Capitol for KHOI radio in Ames, and Marie Gleason, a Bleeding Heartland contributor.
The lawsuit, filed Monday, centers on a May 2022 column Gleason wrote for Bleeding Heartland about an April 2022 meeting of a Pleasant Valley School District committee debating whether to remove the book “All Boys Aren’t Blue” from the high school library. The book frequently has been challenged over its LGBT themes and sexually explicit content.
Gleason, a retired John Deere worker and former legislative candidate, attended the meeting, where the committee eventually voted not to remove the book. In her write-up, she said that “Peter Olsen of Bettendorf threatened the committee with a comment along the lines of, ‘I know who you are, and I know where you live.’”
In the suit, brought by prominent Iowa conservative lawyer Alan Ostergren, Olsen denies saying anything like that. It says Olsen, in public comments. “stated the board would be held accountable for its decisions and that he would hold their names accountable for their vote.”
The Bleeding Heartland article was widely read, Olsen alleges, resulting in teachers and students falsely believing he had threatened the board.
The suit contends that because Belin has editorial control over Bleeding Heartland, she is responsible for publishing the allegedly false account.
Belin declined to comment to the Des Moines Register on specifics of the case. Gleason did not respond to a message, conveyed through Belin, seeking comment .
“We have this in the hands of our attorneys and we will respond appropriately in court,” Belin said.
What did Peter Olsen actually say?
Olsen’s complaint does not quote his actual words from the meeting, but on an audio recording of the session provided by Ostergren he can be heard speaking for several minutes during public comments to advocate for removing the book. Olsen told the committee that “there is a tremendous amount of decay, sexual decay, taking place in our culture” and urged the committee to consult with an expert on sex offenders and child molesters.
“There’s a slippery slope we’re going on here,” he said.
Olson twice makes reference to accountability, first telling the committee that “this board is going to be held accountable to the decisions” and later that “I’m going to hold your names accountable to this vote, because I’m never giving up on this, and there are a heck of a lot of us who are never giving up on this. If you don’t love your children the way I love my children, I don’t know where this ends.”
Before going into closed session, committee members asked Olsen to clarify, noting several had interpreted his remarks as threatening. Olsen again reiterated his belief that the book was pornographic, inappropriate for children, and that “there are children being abused in this community, and there are earmarks in this book that lead to that.” He denied any intent to threaten the committee and said he “didn’t appreciate” that interpretation being put on his words.