Photo Credit: Complete Music Update
The owners of Madison Square Garden have filed a defamation lawsuit against Wired and contributing editor Noah Shachtman following a report based on a massive data breach.
The dispute stems from a recent Wired story headlined “MSG kept a list of gay celebrities,” which analyzed 45 GB of customer data leaked by the hacker group Shiny Hunters.
According to MSG’s New York court filing, the publication engaged in “cherry-picking” from the stolen data to manufacture a false narrative that the venue targets the LGBTQIA+ community for discriminatory purposes.
Allegations and Defense Responses
In its report, Wired noted that MSG assigned risk scores to celebrities and maintained an “LGBTQIA” tag for roughly 100 high-profile individuals in its database, stating the rationale behind the tag was “unclear”.
MSG strongly rejected any discriminatory intent, stating that customer fields—including dietary restrictions, contact information, and community tags—are standard data tools used strictly for relationship management, charitable outreach, and event invitations.
The lawsuit directly targets Shachtman, alleging a history of “selective and unethical journalism”. Wired quickly issued a statement standing by its reporting and calling MSG’s legal action “baseless and ridiculous,” adding that it looks forward to continuing its coverage of billionaire James Dolan’s entertainment empire and holding power to account.
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