Defamation and Online Harassment Laws in Mississippi

Libel and slander are handled mainly as civil lawsuits in Mississippi, shaped by court decisions and a few statutes. The Code sets a one-year filing deadline, requires advance notice before suing covered newspapers and broadcasters, and separately allows a civil claim over insulting words that tend to provoke a breach of the peace, with the jury deciding whether the words are actionable and the damages.

Sources1Miss. Code § 15-1-35 (one-year limitation, including libel and slander)2Miss. Code § 95-1-5 (notice and correction for newspapers and broadcasters)3Miss. Code § 95-1-1 (insulting words actionable)

Mississippi's code still includes a criminal libel statute. A person convicted of writing or publishing a libel can be fined, jailed in the county jail, or both, with the amount and length left to the court based on how serious the offense was. The state constitution also refers to prosecutions for libel.

Sources4Miss. Code § 97-3-55 (Libel; punishment)5Miss. Const. art. 3, § 13

Lawsuits for libel, and for slanderous words about a person or title, must be filed within one year after the cause of action accrues.

Source1Miss. Code § 15-1-35 (one-year limitation, including libel and slander)

Related guide: Statute of limitations for defamation in every state

Mississippi has not enacted an anti-SLAPP law. A 2022 Senate bill to create one died in committee, and three 2026 bills based on the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act (HB 1268, SB 2381 and SB 2734) also died in committee. A defendant facing a baseless suit may instead ask a court for fees or sanctions under Rule 11(b) of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure or the Litigation Accountability Act.

Sources6RCFP Anti-SLAPP Legal Guide: Mississippi7Mississippi Legislature, 2026 Regular Session, HB 1268 history (died in committee)8Mississippi Legislature, 2026 Regular Session, SB 2381 history (died in committee)9Mississippi Legislature, 2026 Regular Session, SB 2734 history (died in committee)

Related guide: Anti-SLAPP laws by state

Before suing over a libel in a newspaper based and published in Mississippi or authorized to do business there, or in a radio or TV broadcast by a station based in the state, the person must give written notice at least ten days before filing, identifying the article or broadcast and the statements said to be false and defamatory. Damages can be limited to actual damages if the outlet proves that it published in good faith, that the falsehood was an honest mistake of fact, that it had reasonable grounds to believe the statements were true, and that within ten days of the notice it published a full and fair correction, apology and retraction with similar prominence. The notice rule does not apply to editorials, regular opinion columns, or items about a candidate published within ten days of an election deciding that candidacy.

Source2Miss. Code § 95-1-5 (notice and correction for newspapers and broadcasters)

The Mississippi Constitution lets a defendant in a libel prosecution offer the truth as evidence, and requires acquittal if the jury finds the statement true and published with good motives and for justifiable ends. Under the U.S. Constitution, a public official suing over statements about official conduct must prove actual malice, meaning the speaker knew the statement was false or acted with reckless disregard for whether it was false.

Sources5Miss. Const. art. 3, § 1310New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964)

Mississippi's cyberstalking law makes it a felony to use email or other electronic communication to threaten bodily harm or property damage or to extort, to repeatedly contact someone to threaten, terrify or harass them, or to knowingly make false claims about death, injury, illness, disfigurement, indecent conduct or crimes involving the recipient or their family to threaten, terrify or harass. The penalty is up to two years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both, rising to up to five years and $10,000 when aggravating factors apply, such as violating a protective order or a prior conviction. Peaceful, nonthreatening political expression and other constitutionally protected activity are excluded.

Source11Miss. Code § 97-45-15 (Cyberstalking)

Related guide: Cyberstalking laws explained

It is a crime to send obscene electronic messages meant to abuse, threaten or harass, to send threatening messages meant to terrify, intimidate or harass, or to make anonymous or repeated calls to harass. A first offense carries up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $500, or both, and a third offense within five years is a felony. Separately, posting a message through the internet or another electronic medium, without the victim's consent and for the purpose of causing injury, is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

Sources12Miss. Code § 97-29-45 (Telecommunications and electronic harassment)13Miss. Code § 97-45-17 (Posting messages through electronic media to cause injury)

Related guide: Online harassment laws explained

We did not find a Mississippi statute aimed specifically at doxxing. The general law against posting messages through electronic media without consent and for the purpose of causing injury may be relevant when personal details are posted to harm someone.

Source13Miss. Code § 97-45-17 (Posting messages through electronic media to cause injury)

Related guide: Is doxxing illegal?

It is a crime to share images or video showing another person's intimate parts or sexual conduct without consent and with intent to harm, when the material was made or obtained where the person reasonably expected privacy, the disclosure causes harm, and the person can be identified. Threatening such a disclosure to gain a benefit, and knowingly promoting the material on a website the offender owns or runs, are also covered. A first offense is a misdemeanor with up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both; repeat offenses and offenses for financial profit are felonies with up to one year of imprisonment, a fine of up to $2,000, or both.

Source14Miss. Code § 97-29-64.1 (Nonconsensual disclosure of intimate visual material)