Journalists beware: Tweets can be libelous

Contrary to common-held belief that Tweets are ephemeral and not subject to libel law, statements on Twitter are fair game for libel suits say legal experts. So far there have been few suits, but as public use and awareness of Twitter increases, libel cases are expected to increase. So far observers could only come up [...]

Dentist loses defamation case must pay Yelp and reviewers for legal fees

A California dentist, who sued Yelp and reviewers for a bad review concerning a filling the dentist put into the mouth of the reviewers’ six-year-old son, must pay court costs according to a ruling in district court. A California appellate court ruled last year that Yelp could not be held for defamation because the post [...]

Internet freedom reaffirmed in recent Chicago case

While the Blockowicz parents suffered greatly from scurrilous posts about their daughter, First Amendment Center’s Douglas Lee says their attempt to force a website to remove the posts was rightly denied in federal court thus making the internet “an even freer environment for speech.” -db First Amendment Center Commentary January 27, 2011 By Douglas Lee [...]

Defamation: Motivational speaker seeks to unmask online detractors

A motivational speaker has filed a defamation suit in federal court after an anonymous online commentator alleged he had extramarital affairs, was dishonest, deceitful and untrustworthy and fleeced investors. -db Online Media Daily December 3, 2010 By Wendy Davis A motivational speaker has sued Elizabeth Arden’s Complaintsboard.com, blog host WordPress, and the Buffalo, N.Y.-based news site [...]

Judge orders Google to reveal name of YouTube cyberbully

Google has 15 days to reveal the identity of a person who posted comments calling a Columbia MBA graduate a “whore,” “a shank,” and “an old hag.” -db New York Daily News October 15, 2010 By Jose Martinez Columbia MBA graduate Carla Franklin went after Google in August in an attempt to unmask her online [...]

Teenage sex trafficking victim sues Village Voice for running sex ad with her photos

A teenager has sued Village Voice Media for knowingly allowing her pimp to post photos of her online in an ad for prostitution services. -db Ars Technica Commentary September 19, 2010 By Jacqui Cheng A teenage child trafficking victim has filed a lawsuit against Village Voice Media, for knowingly allowing her pimp to post ads [...]

Yelp wins defamation case

A New York Supreme Court judge ruled that federal law immunizes Yelp from liability for comments posted on its website by third party users. -db Online Media Daily September 10 2010 By Wendy Davis A judge in Manhattan has dismissed a lawsuit against Yelp by a dentist who alleges that he was defamed by a [...]

Craigslist founder asked to testify before congressional committee on sex trafficking

A CNET commentator says that in an election year Craigslist had better brace themselves for a political onslaught on the issue of sex trafficking beginning with congressional hearings. -db CNET News Commentary September 9, 2010 By Declan McCullagh A year ago, Craigslist founder Craig Newmark was busy touting e-government, promoting neighborhood social networks, and blogging [...]

Online freedom advocate backs Craigslist in battle over ‘adult services’ ads

Electronic Freedom Foundation’s senior staff attorney says that Craigslist has cooperated with law enforcement in identifying sex traffickers operating on its site and should not be bullied by threats from state attorneys general into compromising Internet freedom. -db Electronic Freedom Foundation Commentary September 8, 2010 By Matt Zimmerman On Saturday, after years of pressure from [...]

Digital rights groups rise to Craigslist’s defense in case over harassing posts

A coalition of digital rights groups and law professors have joined to argue in California appellate court that a superior court erred in allowing a man to sue Craigslist for failing to removed harassing posts by its users. -db Online Media Daily September 3, 2010 By Wendy Davis A recent court ruling allowing a California man [...]

Adult services ads: Some see Craigslist shut down as tactic

Analysts say that by shutting its adult services section, Craigslist may be playing to public opinion while considering its options. -db The New York Times September 5, 2010 By Claire Cain Miller SAN FRANCISCO — Craigslist, by shutting off its “adult services” section and slapping a “censored” label in its place, may be engaging in [...]

Craigslist drops adult services section

Craigslist removed its website sexual ads last week, replacing the link with the word “censored.” -db San Francisco Chronicle September 5, 2010 By James Temple SAN FRANCISCO – After years of mounting public pressure, Craigslist appears to have surrendered in a battle over sexual ads on its website that some viewed as a test case [...]

Craigslist’s ‘Adult Services’ decision a blow to free speech?

Craigslist has decided to eplace its “Adult Services” section with a “Censored” bar that blocks content. Does this  limit free speech? MSNBC/ Commentary September 6, 2010 By Athima Chansanchai With Craigslist’s decision to replace its “Adult Services” section of its “Services” classifieds with a “Censored” bar that blocks that content, the online powerhouse has once [...]

Federal judge dismisses ‘cyber libel’ suit

A federal district court judge ruled that the federal Communications Decency Act protected a news station from charges of libel after it allowed readers to post comments about a news anchor’s arrest for cocaine possession. A grand jury subsequently voted not to indict her. -db Online Media Daily September 1, 2010 By Wendy Davis A [...]

Federal appeals court tosses libel suit by cat breeders against Internet service provider

The 8th Circuit dismissed a libel suit by Cozy Kittens Cattery against an Internet service provider that ran what they said were defamatory comments about their cat breeding business. -db Online Media Daily August 11, 2010 By Wendy Davis A federal appellate court has upheld a ruling dismissing a libel lawsuit by cat breeders against [...]

Federal bankruptcy court finds culpable those linking to defamatory blog posts

A Texas bankruptcy judge ruled that when a defendant sent an e-mail linked to websites with defamatory statements about the business practices of a Texas mayor, the defendant could be held for defamation. -db Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press June 3, 2010 By Ellen Biltz A federal bankruptcy court in Texas became one [...]

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 [...]

Libelous online content not easy to remove

Even though a court found that online statements were false and defamatory, the targets of the statements, an Illinois couple and their daughter, were unable to get them removed as the authors refused a request to do so and the online site running the statements refused as well, saying they were not a party to [...]

Another court decision in favor of online site in defamation case

A federal appeals court has ruled that the site ConsumerAffairs.com is immune from liability for alleged libel posted on its site by third parties. -DB Online Media Daily December 30, 2009 By Wendy Davis A federal appellate court has backed gripe site ConsumerAffairs.com in a defamation lawsuit filed by a car dealers. The 4th Circuit [...]