and the Bergdahls are public figures. The standard is that Fox would have had to know the stories were false or show no signs of having tried to find out if they were false.

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Neither Bowe nor his family are elected officials, and unlike the Kardashians, the family don't push themselves into the spotlight other than for the limited purpose of getting their son released. And Bowe himself certainly was in no position to thrust himself into the media.

what are accidental public figures but the courts have never upheld that idea.

It's not like he's taking selfies and sending them out on Twitter from his cave in Pakistan.

to be involuntary or limited purpose public figures in situations where they became involved in a significant public controversy. This position has been criticized (e.g., http://www.lindquist.com/files/Uploads/Documents/Smith/Dragged%20into%20the%20Vortex.pdf ) but whether the Bergdahls might be regarded as public figures in a defamation case isn't clear. One could argue either way. Defamation cases can be terrible cans of worms; sometimes you come out of them worse than when you went in.

naming the troops who supposedly died. My jaw dropped open when I first saw that the names and images of fallen troops were being used in this manner--it was one of the most evil, cynical things I've ever seen in following politics. The families of those men killed had presumably been healing and getting on with their lives, and then to have their loved ones dragged into a manufactured shitstorm--that's where I lost all respect for Bergdahl's platoon mates. They're getting paid for appearances using those men's names for political shock value. Fuck them.

and therefore they'd have to prove actual malice. I know Faux News is actually malicious most of the time, but actual malice in the legal sense (N.Y. Times v. Sullivan) means publishing something knowing it was false or in reckless disregard of the truth. It's a tough standard.

They've accused Bergdahl of being a traitor.

U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl at one point during his captivity converted to Islam, fraternized openly with his captors and declared himself a "mujahid," or warrior for Islam, according to secret documents prepared on the basis of a purported eyewitness account and obtained by Fox News.

Fox News does not have any "secret" information and we all know that. They're pulling this stuff out of their ass, as usual. It would seem to be that "reckless disregard" would be a slam dunk.

is the primary precedent for libel and freedom of the press.

if the court finds that Bergdahl is public figure, winning a libel case is extremely difficult.