Blogging: What You Need To Fnd Out About Defamation

Right now there are over 30 million blogs on the Internet and thousands more getting created every week. Supposing ownership of one blog per person, that’s at the least 30 million individuals slinging around their personal opinions on all that exists under the sun. This can be a good thing. The free exchange of thoughts and ideas is what prevents the world from becoming a stagnant puddle of uninspiring values.

Having said that, to grab a line from the movie Spiderman, ‘With great power comes great responsibility’. Blogging is now a means for the voice of the people being heard. We must be cautious, though, never to abuse our power through thoughtless acts that hurt the credibility of bloggers and blogging. One place that remains our Achilles heel is when good posts go bad.

In the united states, libel and slander are the two types of defamation. In several states, courts have started treating all of them the same as the only difference between the two is that libel is really a false written statement about a person, place or thing that harms his/her/its reputation while slander is the verbal act of the same offense. Whether blogged on the Internet or whispered offline to your mother, the common denominator is that what is said is false.

Since I’m psychic, I already know just what you really are thinking. ‘The First Amendment in the US Constitution protects me. Provided that it is the truth, I could say whatever I want.’ Well, kind of. As crazy precisely as it sounds, truth is not the silver bullet defense for every case of libel or slander. A judge may require that besides being true the information relayed is in the public interest to learn.

So reporting that the CEO of a major corporation was ensnared pilfering money from the employee’s pension account would probably get dismissed from civil court while telling the world your neighbor has smelly feet could easily get you into more trouble than you really want. Even though it were true, why would it be in the public interest to know your neighbor’s feet could empty out Yankee Stadium?

Right now, the First Amendment will respect your right to an opinion. If you think how the Mr. Squiggly Toddler Toy is a piece of crap, you’re certainly free to inform anyone within earshot when you ensure it is clear that it is your opinion on the subject. Likewise, if a person puts forth a negative sentiment regarding their experience with you which is clear to any reasonable person that it’s their opinion, your legal recourse against them is significantly limited.

Parody and satire can also be protected. If they weren’t, Saturday Night Live and South Park would have never managed to get past the first episode. And also criticism of a public performance such as a symphony, as well as a book is protected under the Fair Criticism and Comment clause.

Right now the Internet contributes some interesting layers of complication for the whole blogging shebang. Rather than being found in a local area, libel has the possibilities to cross international borders and not every single country handles these cases the same. One of the major problems courts around the globe are having to deal with will be the one of jurisdiction. If I live in America and I libel someone that lives in the United Kingdom where exactly does the case take place and who’s laws and regulations do we go by? Many cases have set a scary precedent that leans towards having the ability to sue anywhere around the world for libel published on the net.

Next you have the issue of third party liability. Say you’re a responsible blogger who’s careful about her posts to avoid a troublesome libel accusation. One of your readers posts a libelous statement in your blog. Can you be held responsible for that person’s actions? Well, up to now the law has only made provisions for Internet service providers stating that they can’t be held accountable for how their clients use their services (as it pertains to defamation). Likewise, blog service providers for example Google and Six Apart may likely be immune to any lawsuits arising from a person’s use of the service.

No matter whether or not you would be held responsible may come down to if you moderate your comments. If you allow comments to be posted automatically, you might be shielded under Section 230 of the US Code (for US Citizens). It might be another story, however, if you approve comments before posting them. It may be argued your posting of the comments equates your agreement to them. As of yet, no one has shown up in court to argue this, for this reason the fact that we are kind of forced to make it up as we go along.

Defamation is a tricky issue and something that needs to be tread carefully if your are in order to avoid landing in court. Here are a few tips to help keep you out of trouble. Take note: I am not an attorney. Even though I did get to play one on “Touched by an Angel” . If you and your blog handle some highly controversial issues or you’re just not sure how much trouble you would get into should you published that post about your best friend’s boyfriend, I recommend getting in touch using a lawyer to obtain the best advice.

1. Change the names. Definitely the easiest thing that you can do is to change in order to avoid using the name of the man or women you are talking about and to strip away as much identifying information as possible. If a reasonable person can visit your hometown and quickly identify the “mealy-mouth cow” you blogging about on the internet, you might want to carry out some editing.

2. Take advantage of a disclaimer. I have an good one on my Internet site. Even some thing as fundamental as “By making use of this blog, you agree that the opinions expressed are the property and responsibility of the respective owners” may provide some safeguard in the event of a court action. (Check with a real lawyer please).

3. Consider writing your rant as a parody or satire. Extreme exaggerations that no reasonable individual would believe are not considered defamation since, quite frankly, they are unbelievable. Be careful though, this kind of writing takes a particular je sais quoi, and might very easily backfire on you. Use a fair person proofread your entry to ensure it passes the believability test.

4. Be careful about your language. Be sure to use wording that can make it obvious that this is your thoughts and opinions about the subject matter. Assertions like, “That Mr. Squiggly Toddler Toy is a piece of crap” makes it seem like you’re stating a fact when in all actuality you’re making a personal judgment about the toy. Something similar to “I believe Mr. Squiggly Toddler Toy is a piece of crap” or “That Mr. Squiggly Toddler Toy fell apart right after the very first use” are usually safe bets. At the least as far as the law is involved.

5. And last yet definitely not least, really don’t tell false tales. Right now this may seem like common sense but wait , how common is good sense today? Really. If you feel the need to resort to lying regarding a person, you might want to seek professional aid in examining why you need to do that. ‘Cause it’s likely that, it’s not to safeguard the public. Use blogging wisely!

Blogging is the best way to meet folks and also keep current in the world and doing so responsibly will simply make the experience better. Remain safe, stay sane and most of all, have some fun.

Russ McGinn