The Latest: Sex tape trial begins between wrestler, website

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Latest on the case between wrestler Hulk Hogan and the website Gawker. (All times local):

2:05 p.m.

More than 200 jurors were summoned to a Florida courtroom for the beginning of a three-week trial over a $100 million defamation lawsuit that wrestler Hulk Hogan filed against Gawker Media in 2012.

Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, lives in the nearby Tampa Bay area, and he’s suing the website Gawker. He’s seeking $100 million in the privacy lawsuit.

When called to the court Tuesday, many of the prospective jurors weren’t thrilled about the possibility of a weekslong case. Of the 114 who responded to a summons, all but 48 were dismissed by noon. Those who weren’t dismissed were asked about their exposure to the story in news media and whether they follow celebrity news.

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4:32 a.m.

After years of legal wrangling, the civil trial between former professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and the website Gawker is scheduled to begin.

The trial will open Tuesday in Florida.

The ex-wrestler, whose legal name is Terry Bollea, sued Gawker after it published parts of a sex video in 2012.

He seeks $100 million from Gawker for posting the video of him and Heather Cole, the ex-wife of Hogan’s one-time friend and radio show host Bubba the Love Sponge Clem.

Gawker says it had the right to publish the edited video because Hogan talked in detail about his sex life before the video’s release, which made the story newsworthy.