Anonymous speech: Federal court protects identities of posters on news website

A Pennsylvania federal court will not allow a man suing in an employment discrimination case to discover the identities of those making posts on a new website. The man wanted the identities to discredit the testimony of those who fired him. -db

Citizen Media Law Project
Commentary
March 8, 2010
By Sam Bayard

Thomas O’Toole at TechLaw points us to [...]

EFF: Court order to shut down websites sets dangerous precedent

The Electronic Frontier Foundation argues that when a New Jersey court shut down three websites allegedly running defamatory messages, it  disregarded federal law and ignored the First Amendment. -DB

Electronic Frontier Foundation
Legal Analysis
January 7, 2010
By Kurt Opsahl
Over the holidays, a New Jersey court issued an order requiring upstream providers to shut down three anti-H1-B websites [...]

Women’s group sues Google for bloggers’ defamation

The National Association of Professional Women is suing Google and three other Web sites for publishing bloggers’ statements that say the organization is a scam. -DB

Courthouse News Service
December 31, 2009
By Barbara Leonard

MINEOLA, N.Y. – The National Association of Professional Women claims Google and three other Web sites defamed it by allowing bloggers to publish defamatory [...]

Online debate between candidate’s son and unidentified writer provokes another dispute over anonymous speech

Citizen Media Law Project blogger Marc Randazza says that although a comment made by an adult to a teen-ager in an online debate was malicious and juvenile, it was not defamatory and should enjoy First Amendment  protection given court decisions on the right to speak anonymously. -DB

To read Marc’s full comment, go here:

Citizen Media Law Project

Federal judge orders Prop. 8 backers to cough up campaign strategy documents without delay

Backers of proposition 8 were hoping to delay turning over campaign records while appealing  a court order to surrender the documents. But a district federal judge ordered them to relinquish the documents so that Prop. 8 opponents could examine them for anti gay bias. -DB

San Francisco Chronicle

October 26, 2009
Bob Egelko
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge said [...]

University of Colorado denies football press passes to websites that post anonymous comments

INDenver Times no longer runs comments on football stories in their online edition in response to University of Colorado’s policy to refuse press passes to websites who allow pseudonymous posts or anonymous comments. The university is concerned about defamatory and irresponsible comments about players and coaches. -DB
Denver Westword
Denver New Blog
September 25, 2009
By Michael Roberts
A sharp-eyed reader [...]

UC Davis case: Judge suggests avenue to determine identity of anonymous bloggers

Although a Sacramento judge ruled substantially in favor of a blog operator who was trying to keep secret the identities of his bloggers, she also said the plaintiff in the case could hire someone to conduct a search for the identities. -DB
The Sacramento Bee
September 14, 2009
By Hudson Sangree
Those anonymous comments you’ve been posting online might [...]

Don’t ban anonymity urges one legal expert

While siding with Google against the blogger who defamed the model by calling her a “skank”, a First Amendment advocate argues that it is important to protect anonymity of some contemptible speakers to safeguard the freedom of others such as whistleblowers and dissenters in totalitarian regimes to remain anonymous. -DB
Citizen Media Law Project
Commentary
August 26, 2009
By Dan [...]

Blogger of venomous insults sues Google for outing her

Legal experts think that a fashion student’s suit against Google has little chance of success. She had anonymously called a model a “shank” and was subsequently identified by Google. -DB
San Francisco Chronicle
August 28, 2009
By James Temple
The blogger who anonymously tarred a fashion model as a “skank” before being outed by Google Inc. under court order [...]

Blogger intends to sue Google over outing

After Google revealed the identity of an anonymous blogger, her lawyer promised to sue citing the First Amendment right to speak anonymously. -DB
Wired
August 24, 2009
By Kim Zetter
An anonymous blogger unmasked by Google last week following a court order has vowed to sue the internet giant for violating her privacy.
Rosemary Port, who operated a blog called “Skanks [...]

District of Columbia sets bar higher for revealing anonymity of Internet commentators

The District of Columbia high court established new strict guidelines for plaintiffs seeking the identify of online commentators. -DB
Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
August 14, 2009
By Rory Eastburg
The District of Columbia’s highest court Thursday announced a demanding new standard that plaintiffs must meet before they can obtain the names of anonymous Internet commenters.
According to the [...]