Kahn

—The chief questions presented by this appeal are whether plaintiff, a publicly employed social worker, stated facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action in her complaint based upon an allegedly defamatory letter written by defendant to plaintiff’s supervisor and whether plaintiff is a “public official” within the meaning of New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964) 376 U.S. 254 [ 11 L.Ed.2d 686 , 84 S.Ct. 710 , 95 A.L.R.2d 1412 ], Plaintiff appeals from a judgment on the pleadings and defendants cross-appeal from the trial court’s denial of attorneys fees. We will affirm the judgment in its entirety.

I.

On November 15, 1983, plaintiff, Marilyn Kahn, filed a complaint in propria persona purporting to state a single cause of action for libel against defendant Rosemary Bower and the West Coast Children’s Center (WCCC), a private facility providing psychological testing and counseling for children, of which Ms. Bower was director. In April 1986, plaintiff filed her first amended complaint. The first cause of action was for libel, and alleged as follows: Plaintiff was employed as a child welfare worker I with the Alameda County Social Services Agency. Defendant Bower and…