Nik Richie | |
|---|---|
| Born | Hooman Abedi Karamian February 12, 1979 Hackensack, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Occupation | Internet personality |
| Years active | 2007–2018 |
| Known for | Gossip website TheDirty.com; reality TV appearances |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
Nik Lamas-Richie is an American Internet personality most prominent in the late 2000s and 2010s. Richie is best known as the founder of controversial[1] gossip website TheDirty.com.
Richie was born in Hackensack, New Jersey as Hooman Abedi Karamian.[2] Prior to his Internet career, he worked as a credit card processor.[3]
Richie founded the gossip website TheDirty.com in March 2007 as DirtyScottsdale.com while living in Scottsdale, Arizona.[4] The content on Dirtyscottsdale.com initially focused on Richie's personal criticism of Scottsdale and its club scene. The later and more widely known version of TheDirty.com allows users to anonymously upload their own "dirt" including news, gossip, accusations, photos, videos, or text, and comment on posts submitted by others.[5]
Richie operated TheDirty.com anonymously until September 4, 2008, when he was arrested for DUI and reckless driving in Scottsdale. Once news of his arrest surfaced, Richie publicly admitted his real identity.[6]
In a March 2019 Instagram post, Richie stated he was no longer associated with TheDirty.com, having 'retired' from the site in April 2018.[7]
Richie has been the defendant in several lawsuits relating to material posted on TheDirty.com. Like operators of other blogs and websites which allow third party users to submit content, Richie has argued that he is protected from liability by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
In a heavily publicized case, Sarah Jones v. Dirty World Entertainment Recordings, LLC, a federal court in Kentucky initially found that Richie was not entitled to CDA immunity in a case arising from several posts about Kentucky high school teacher and part-time cheerleader Sarah Jones.[8] The jury awarded Jones $338,000 in compensatory and punitive damages.[9] However, Richie filed a successful appeal before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, which in June 2014 ordered the judgment vacated and dismissed.[10]
In November 2010, Richie was interviewed by Phil McGraw on an episode of Dr. Phil devoted to the subject of online bullying and gossip entitled "Dirt, Lies and the Internet.".[11][12] McGraw questioned Richie about the morality of a website which allows users to openly bash each other with hurtful and profane comments, to which Richie responded that there is a marketplace for such a website. McGraw replied, "Well, there's a marketplace for heroin too, but that doesn't justify being a heroin addict."[12]
In November 2011, Richie was interviewed by talk show host Anderson Cooper in an episode during which he was confronted by Sarah Jones, the former Cincinnati Bengals cheerleader and high school teacher who, at the time, was suing Richie for defamation.[13] Richie was featured in a second interview with Anderson Cooper which aired in January 2012.[14]
In June 2011, ABC News program 20/20 aired a segment about Richie and his legal battle with Sarah Jones.[15][16]
In late 2012, Richie and his then-wife Shayne Lamas appeared on Season 2 of VH1 reality show Couples Therapy along with several other couples.[17] In the season's final episode, Richie and Lamas renewed their wedding vows in a televised ceremony.[18] Richie and Lamas appeared together in a Couples Therapy reunion episode which aired in 2014.[19]
In May 2013, Richie released a memoir, Sex, Lies and The Dirty.[20]
Richie has been married twice. His first marriage, to Amanda Toney, took place in 2005 and ended in 2009.[21] His second marriage was to actress and reality TV personality Shayne Lamas. The pair met during a vacation to Las Vegas and were married on April 18, 2010 at the Little White Wedding Chapel[22] eight hours after they first met.[23] They had two children: daughter Press, born November 11, 2011,[24] and son Lyon, born via surrogate on July 4, 2015.[25] They divorced in 2021.[26]
Richie was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2015.[27]