Posted 08/19/09
By Jason Kessler
CNN
NEW YORK (CNN) — A model who was slammed with derogatory terms by an anonymous blogger has the right to learn the identity of her online heckler, a judge ruled.
In August 2008, a user of Blogger.com, Google’s blogging service, created "Skanks in NYC," a site that assailed Liskula Cohen, 37, a Canadian-born onetime cover girl who has appeared in Vogue and other fashion magazines. The blog featured photos of Cohen captioned with terms including "psychotic," "ho," and "skank."
On Monday, New York Supreme Court Judge Joan Madden ruled that Google must hand over to Cohen any identifying information it possesses about the blog’s creator…….
In her ruling, the judge quoted a Virginia court that ruled in a similar case that nameless online taunters should be held accountable when their derision crosses a line.
"The protection of the right to communicate anonymously must be balanced against the need to assure that those persons who choose to abuse the opportunities presented by this medium can be made to answer for such transgressions," the judge said, quoting the Virginia decision.
Cohen’s attorney said he was "happy that the court recognizes that the Internet is not a place where people can freely defame people."
To read the full article click CNN
I have wondered if you cane sue a News channel or a Congress person for Lies he or them spredding on the internet.
Hopefully this ruling, and others, will make people realize that there is a need for some reasonableness in what they say whether with name or not.
Thank you, Sandra. A cautionary message for those who think that they can post anything they want on a blog and are protected by anonymity, or that ‘free speech’ means there are no boundaries to what can be said or written.
I think many people are getting tired of, and maybe even frightened by the excesses of the Internet. Time for a wake-up call, eh?