Actually, what I meant was that only attorneys, as far as I know, are entitled to per se liable relief, for the damage to their reputations, as I was once sued by an attorney for liable (it was dismissed, he lost) who later fled the state.
Any litigant can move for that.
Let's say you stated, "Hermione Street Walker, of Jaybird Trailer Park, ain't nothing but a big fat whore."
Let's further agree that this was not a privileged communication and you said this in broadly disseminated written or verbal form.
It would not matter what explanatory circumstances or evidence accompanied that statement. Truth would not be a defense nor would Hermione have to show evidence of actual malice, because the statement per se would tend to subject her to "ridicule, contempt or disgrace."
I have not yet read American Mourning, but I'm certain the authors did not label Sheehan as a "dirty old lady," "deviate" or "pervert" or characterize her as "sleazy," "immoral" and the like. In this respect, writing anything more than a simple recitation of well-documented, objectively stated facts obtained from a non-privileged source would expose the authors to adverse summary judgment of libel per se.